Furyan, Meet Your Match
by Shadow of the Forgotten
Summary: Riddick has never met an opponent he couldn't handle, but this new merc on his tail is about to give him a run for his money. A deadly combination of brains and beauty, she's quick with a blade and seemingly immune to his charms. He's going to have to up his game if he's to have any chance of getting out of this one alive.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own Riddick or anything associated with said series.

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"Did you hear, Lyra's picked herself a new bounty?"

"You mean she _chose_ to go after him?"

"You've got to be some kind of stupid to take on _that_ job willingly."

"Well she always has been drawn to the dangerous ones."

"But Riddick? Isn't that a bit extreme even for her?"

"And she's going after him _alone_!"

"That girl doesn't stand a chance."

"It'll be nice to have a chance to go after the high-priced bounties again though. I'm getting tired of her snagging all the good ones."

"Yeah, she never was one to share. I'll bet she wishes she asked for help when Riddick guts her."

Ignoring the laughter that comment brought on, the subject of the conversation continued eating her crunchy mashed potatoes and stale bread in silence. She'd heard a hell of a lot worse before, and besides, it wasn't in her nature to pick fights with those weaker than her. Forcing the disgusting meal down her throat, she made a mental note to stop off at an actual city when she reached her next destination instead of another crappy merc outpost. Sure it was nice to have her supplies and information all under the same roof, but the food sucked and the company was even worse.

Three bites later she'd had all she could stomach and she stood up, grabbed her plate off the table, and walked right past the table that had been talking about her minutes ago on her way out. Catching the eye of two of the occupants, a couple of young men who looked like they didn't know their heads from a hole in the ground, she blew them a kiss and then flipped them off with a dangerous smirk.

It was her turn to laugh when as she was walking away she heard mutterings of "Holy hell, was that _her_!", and "Oh god, we're so dead!" Sure they badmouthed her behind her back, but there wasn't a merc alive who didn't know her name and reputation.

Yes, she was that good.

Dumping her plate in the trash by the exit, she shoved the heavy metal door open with her foot while pulling her video screen out of one of the many side pockets of her black cargo pants. A few seconds of searching later and she had what she was looking for, all records for one Richard B. Riddick. She hadn't actually been planning on going after this particular convict, there was something about him that made her uneasy and she tended to trust her instincts, but the bounty had reached a record high and one of the few people she called a friend was in desperate need of funds at the moment. If the idiot hadn't gone and gotten himself shot she would've passed Riddick over like every other time before, but Skinner had bills to pay and a baby on the way . . . and it _was_ sort of her fault that he'd gotten hurt in the first place.

A few weeks ago he'd asked her to help him move cargo to some backwoods planet in the middle of nowhere. A shady deal to be sure, but it was a simple transport gig that paid well so he'd taken it. Things had gone smoothly until it came time for payment. While renegotiating the terms, something which happened far too often for her liking, one of the thugs had tried to feel her up. It didn't end well.

They'd lost their payment, been banned from going anywhere near that god awful place again, and her blonde haired friend had wound up shot in the stomach. By the time he was all fixed up he was buried under a mountain of debt and forced to stay on bed rest for two months so he could heal properly. Feeling guilty, Lyra decided to take on the one bounty she knew could fix all his problems.

Her ship was tucked in a garage not too far from the central outpost, close enough to be within easy reach, but far enough away to avoid the crowds which was exactly how she liked it. There were two things she truly cared about, the first being her select group of friends, and the second her ship. She'd retrofitted an old transporter she'd found in a scrap yard with all the latest toys. It was fast, could handle month long journeys with ease, was outfitted with the latest in high powered weaponry, and even had a full functioning bathroom. Though that last one had cost her three bounties and a year's supply of fine wine from a place she'd never heard of.

Less than five minutes after leaving the mess hall she was once again sitting in the pilot's seat, tapping through the ignition sequence and running her standard equipment checks. A few minutes later she was breaking atmo and found herself surrounded by a never-ending sea of stars. This was one of the reasons she'd become a merc, the freedom. Well, that and the pay wasn't half bad either.

If she was being honest though, the real reason was because it was all she knew. Her father had died shortly after her birth and her mother had found them safe passage on a merc ship. Born from a race of fighters, Selena had no problem paying their way by helping bring in bounties and the captain of the Tanker, Markum Tenner, and his crew soon took it upon themselves to help raise the young Lyra.

An odd family to be sure, but those were some of the best years of her life.

Shortly before her thirteenth birthday one of their own betrayed them and her mother was slaughtered before her eyes. She hadn't been allowed to join in the chase, but once he was in custody Markum had handed her a knife and walked away without a word. Killing wasn't her thing, but she'd relished every scream she'd pulled from that bastard's throat.

When she turned eighteen she scraped together enough money to get herself a ship and headed out on her own, picking up work whenever it became available and building herself a reputation of being one of the best bounty hunters in the business. When she set her sights on someone, she always delivered. Always. And Riddick would be no different.

There was a beep on the console that snapped her out of her musing and she clicked on the latest news broadcast. Apparently her target had popped his head out of whatever hole he'd been hiding in. Now it was time to do what she did best. He wouldn't know what hit him.

Plotting a course, she leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. It would take half a week to get there so she may as well relax while she had the chance seeing as she wouldn't get much sleep once she caught up with her target.

ooooo

By the time she arrived just outside of the planet's gravity pull she was more than ready for a little action. There wasn't any cryo gear on her ship since she never went under with it anyway, which unfortunately left her with quite a bit of free time while traveling. One can start to go a tad stir crazy stuck all alone on a ship for days on end, and even with her seemingly limitless patience she was itching for a fight.

Never one to jump into anything without first doing the proper research, she surveyed the planet for other signals and deduced that there were two other ships already ahead of her. Not that she was worried, Riddick had a habit of slipping free of nearly everything. Once she'd made a log of the people and equipment on the ground it was easy to figure out what his plan would be.

If she was correct, and she always was, he'd be space bound within a day. All she'd need to do then is tag his ship, track him to his next destination, and then outwit the cleverest criminal on record. _Should be fun, _she thought, a smirk making its way onto her face. She did love a good chase.

Moments after she began tapping her fingers in boredom the ship's video screen came to life. Static slowly gave way to an image and she found herself looking at the official database of bounties. To keep most of the mercs out of her way she'd sent out a notice claiming Riddick as her target. While you technically couldn't claim a bounty until they were in custody, you were allowed to announce your plans to go after them. Doing so helped to keep fighting over the same bounty to a minimum.

Scrolling through the list of names, she clicked on Riddick's to make sure her intentions had been logged in. Under his name there was a long list of mercs that had either attempted to catch him and failed, or had been killed in the process, and it took some time before she reached the bottom to find her name listed among them.

Frowning as she read it, Lyra clicked on her name and logged in so she could edit the information listed. "I've told them a thousand times to change my name, and yet here I am listed as Lyriana," she grumbled under her breath. "How hard is it for them to erase a few letters?" It wasn't that she hated her name or anything, but she'd worked hard to build up her reputation and Lyra sounded a lot more threatening than Lyriana. Manually altering it, she made a mental note to submit her paperwork . . . _again_.

Her scanners began beeping, picking up two ships leaving the planet, and she pushed the name dilemma to the back of her mind as her fingers danced over the console. None of her calculations had included another ship leaving with him, she always figured he'd leave on his own, so now she was having to rework her strategy on the fly.

A quick check showed her that Riddick was alone on one of the ships, which meant the other was likely filled with mercs. Why they were letting him go she had no idea, but that wasn't her problem. They were heading in the opposite direction, a good thing for her as it meant she wouldn't have to deal with the others while trying to take the convict in, but there was no way she'd be able to tag his ship now. Not without giving away her position to the other ship, which was out of the question.

Unfortunately that left her with only one option, tailing him. Easier said than done when there was another ship nearby, but she'd long ago learned the art of stealth and had made sure her ship was able to fly without leaving hardly any signs of its presence. As soon as the other ship was out of sight, she'd be on her way.

Erring on the side of caution, she remained hidden behind the small asteroid she'd found upon her arrival for an additional ten minutes after the merc ship's signal disappeared. Yes it gave Riddick a bigger head start, but she was confident in her ability to predict his movements and was fairly certain she'd have him back in her sights within a few hours.

She found his trail in less than one.

Over the course of the next few days the convict used every trick in the book, and some new ones for good measure, to cover his tracks. It was impressive really, how well he was able to make himself disappear. It would've taken weeks to find him if she hadn't managed to catch up with him to start with.

By the time he landed on a small mining planet a week later Lyra was more than ready to haul his ass in. She'd been awake for two days straight, having gotten mere hours of sleep before that, and was in desperate need of a shower. With as tricky as he was, she'd barely left the cockpit during the trip, worried he might somehow slip from her grasp if she so much as took a bathroom break.

Landing in the ship yard outside the city, she splashed some cold water on her face, double-checked to make sure her weapons were where they were supposed to be, slipped her vid screen into the side pocket of her pants, pulled a leather jacket on over her black tank-top to cover up the blades on her back, and made her way out into the slowly fading light of day.

Never having been to the place before, she'd dug up all the information she could find about the layout of the town and its inhabitants before she'd landed so she had a pretty good idea where she could find Riddick. Stepping around a drunken man who'd passed out against the side of a small housing complex, she wrinkled her nose at the smell.

There weren't many things she disliked about her job, but having to trudge through filthy places like this in search of a rapist, murderer or thief, always made her wonder why she never found a nice rich man to settle down with. Of course then she'd remember how utterly boring it was being a proper lady, she'd been forced to do so while tracking down a bounty a few years back, and suddenly things didn't seem so bad anymore.

"Hey there sexy," a man purred into her ear. "How about we find ourselves a room?"

"How about I remove your hand instead?" Lyra asked back, a quick movement bringing her katana around to rest against his left wrist.

The man's eyes widened as he stared at the small trail of blood sliding down his arm and then he stumbled backwards as fast as he could. "N-n-never mind, I can see you're very busy right now."

Slipping the blade back under her jacket as he ran off down the street, she continued on her way as if nothing had happened.

It took another five minutes to reach her destination. The bar was just as crappy as the rest of the town, but from its location and size she figured it was where most business in this place was conducted. Exactly the sort of place a criminal looking to find supplies and a new ride would want to go.

Crowded and dimly lit, it looked like every other bar she'd ever been in. There were men everywhere, drinking, laughing and flirting with every woman that passed by, but if one looked closely you'd see the shifty eyes, packages changing hands, and the obvious outlines of weapons on every single person in the building.

Signaling the man behind the counter, she grabbed whatever drink he'd poured for her and made her way to a table in the back corner. It was near the back exit, had a view of the whole bar, and was conveniently empty. Well, it was once she threatened the men sitting at it anyway.

Leaning back, she gave off the air of someone just looking to relax as her eyes scanned the room. To keep up appearances she brought the glass to her lips every few minutes, but refused to take so much as a sip because she didn't want her senses to be dulled by cheap liquor.

A few of the patrons kept sending curious glances her way, but she was used to getting strange looks from people. She was wearing her favorite black cargo pants that had so many pockets lining the sides it was a wonder they stayed up at all with as much stuff as she piled in them, and the leather jacket she'd received from the man who'd raised her after her mother died. Not exactly a feminine outfit, but it got the job done and that was all she cared about. Her shoulder length black hair had been pulled into a tight braid leaving her bangs hanging loose around her face to cover a scar that ran from below her right eye to her chin, a souvenir from her first solo mission, and combined with her tanned skin and dark eyes she didn't exactly look like a native.

When one of the men at the counter looked her way again she nudged the jacket aside enough so he'd be able to see the symbol stitched to the inside. It was similar to the badge a cop would wear, but the points were turned inward as a way to show the wearer was a bounty hunter. There wasn't an official sign to show you were a merc, but unofficially it was the same as having a neon sign flashing above her head. She didn't usually announce what she was, but wasn't in the mood to deal with the locals so you could say it was her way of telling them to back the hell off and not cause any problems.

Watching as he elbowed the man next to him and they exchanged a few words with the barkeep, she gave him a nod when he raised his glass in her direction and covered a grin behind her drink as their eyes started wandering around the bar. It wasn't that uncommon for a woman to be a merc, she'd met quite a few during her travels, but traveling alone was unheard of and she could tell they were looking around for the rest of her crew.

Let them look, it would keep their eyes away from her for awhile and hopefully prevent anymore unwanted attention coming her way.

When an hour passed and she still hadn't spotted her target she began to wonder if perhaps she'd miscalculated things. She knew he was planet-side, had followed him down at a safe distance, and she'd been certain that he'd eventually come here as it was the best option for tracking down what he needed, but if he was planning on dropping by he should've been there by now.

Releasing a frustrated growl at the thought of all the time she'd wasted, and hoping he hadn't already skipped out, she was ready to storm out when a hush fell over the room. Following the heads of the people around her she froze at the sight that greeted her. She hadn't been wrong after all.

Dressed in a dark tank top and snug fitting black pants, he was tall and had enough muscle to take on several men without breaking a sweat. His lack of hair and the goggles he wore over his eyes gave him a dangerous look and she swore she heard several of the women sigh as he made his way to the counter.

Sinking back into her seat, she watched him out of the corner of her eye as she continued her charade of an average worker looking to relax. She'd thought she'd done a pretty good job of blending in, but partway through his conversation with one of the men who'd been eyeing her earlier he lifted his nose to sniff the air and then turned to look straight at her. The smirk he sent her way was positively feral and she couldn't resist the urge to return one in kind.

He seemed to find that amusing, the corner of his lip twitching up before he turned his attention back to the man next to him.

Pushing her glass aside she stood up and slipped out through the back door and into a dark alley lined with trash, knowing he'd follow her shortly. As a general rule she caught her bounties by stealth, it was safer and she was very good at it, but seeing as he'd already spotted her she may as well have some fun with him. She hadn't had a decent fight in months and he would definitely be a challenge.

"Been awhile since I've smelled beautiful," a deep voice said near her ear and she rolled her eyes with a snort.

"You need to get your nose checked there buddy; I haven't showered in days."

Laughing, he moved in to sniff her hair but was forced to pause when he felt a blade prick his skin. Backing away, he raised an eyebrow at the woman who'd somehow managed to slip a small sword into her hand without him noticing. "Hey now, I didn't come here to fight," he said, holding his hands up to show he was unarmed. "Just thought we might want to get to know each other better."

Twirling the katana in her hand, Lyra shook her head in disappointment. "And here I thought Riddick was some kind of badass, what with your criminal history and all, but you're just like every other man out there. Horny and stupid."

Dropping his hands to his sides, he slowly slipped a shiv out of the back of his pants as if suddenly realizing she was a threat. "So, you a merc then? Where's the rest of your crew? Waiting around to jump me once my defenses are down?"

His tone had darkened and she could see his muscles tensing for a fight. "If that was the case, wouldn't it have been smarter for me to play along with your little game?" she questioned back.

Flicking his eyes around every time he heard a noise, Riddick kept the majority of his focus on the woman in front of him. "You planning on going a few rounds with me before calling in backup? Give yourself some points by going up against me all by your lonesome? Cause if that's the case you should probably quit while you're ahead. I won't go easy on you."

"And here I was about to say the same to you." She was used to being underestimated, but she was quite a bit stronger than she looked, and extremely fast. He had no idea what he was getting himself into. There was a reason she was one of the top bounty hunters in the 'verse, and her record proved it. One hundred and twelve bounties in less than ten years, and that was only after she went solo. The total didn't include the ones she helped bring in while working on the Tanker.

The girl had balls to go head to head with him without any backup, but he wasn't about to go back to the slam so she was going to have to learn the hard way that Richard B. Riddick was not a man to mess with.

Noting the weapon in his hand, a small curved blade no more than six inches long, she slipped the jacket off her shoulders and set it down on a box that sat next to the wall of the bar. Her twin katanas went next, followed by her vid screen since she really didn't want to have to replace the thing again.

When his eyebrow raised in question she gave him a half shrug and pulled a knife from the sheath strapped to her ankle. "Figured I'd make things a little more fair," she answered his unasked question, tossing the smaller blade back and forth a couple times to reacquaint herself with the weight and feel of it.

"Your funeral girl."

Stalking forward, Lyra attacked without another word. Wanting to see how he moved, she slashed forward and then spun her leg around to aim a kick at his knee. He dodged both with ease and she was pleased to see that he would definitely be able to hold his own. Not giving him a chance to retaliate, she continued bringing her leg around and used the momentum to bring the knife in an arc that barely managed to slice his shirt at the navel.

Riddick jumped back and fingered the tiny hole with appreciation. She was decent enough with a knife, and light on her feet, which would make the fight more entertaining, but so far he hadn't seen anything special. "Is that all you got, 'cause I've fought a kid with more skill than you."

"That so? Well I guess I'll have to step things up a bit for ya."

Dropping under the shiv as he brought it towards her side, she braced herself on the ground with her hands, pushed backwards, and flipped over his head before his arm finished it's swing. He was faster than she'd thought he'd be and managed to nick her arm when he spun around to catch her. Seeing the thin trail of blood she shook her head. "That could've been my lucky jacket," she frowned, raising her knife so it was pointed at his face. "If you trash my clothes I turn you into the nearest slam buck ass naked."

Not sure what to make of her, she was clearly outmatched and yet seemed completely calm, he wondered if perhaps she was mentally unstable. Why else would she be talking about her clothes in the middle of their fight? Shaking his head, he pushed the thought aside. He could think about it after he'd knocked the crazy woman out.

Having gotten a feel for his movements now, she sprinted forward and the two began a dance of blades. Each strike was dodged and followed up with one of their own as they moved around each other with practiced ease. To an observer it probably appeared as though they were on equal ground, but Lyra was forcing her way in closer each time she moved, making his attacks weaker by the second.

Riddick knew exactly what she was doing, but no matter how he moved, or how much power he put behind an attack, he couldn't seem to force her aside and it was starting to aggravate him. She was putting up one hell of a fight that was for sure.

Deciding his shiv was practically useless at this point, he tossed it aside and brought his arms out in an attempt to grab her, but she slipped out of his grasp and he earned a nice slice to his bicep for the trouble. With his hands free, he was able to slap her arms aside easier, but he was never fast enough to catch her and she somehow managed to twist away from every punch he made.

Lyra hadn't had this much of a workout for awhile and she could feel sweat beginning to drip down the back of her neck as the fight dragged on. Knowing it wouldn't be long before his strength would begin to overpower her speed, she figured it was time to get serious and end things.

Flipping the blade around in her hand so the tip was pointed towards her, she feinted a kick between his legs, smashing the hilt of her knife down on the back of his neck when he, as predicted, hunched over slightly to protect his assets. She shook her head when he sank to the ground with a groan of pain. "Like I said, the same as every other guy out there," she said, kicking him hard enough to ensure that he was well and truly out of it.

Rolling her shoulders as she walked back over to her stuff, she winced when her muscles protested the movement. She hadn't been training as hard lately since most of the bounties out there had been, for lack of a better term, pathetic, and she was starting to regret her laziness. If she wasn't so good at picking up on every muscle twitch of her opponent the fight likely would've ended very differently.

Sending a silent thank you to her deceased mother for helping her hone her enhanced instincts, she grabbed her vid screen and tapped her location into the auto-pilot on her ship. There wasn't a whole lot of space in the street that led to the alley, but there was no way she was going to haul his heavy ass all the way back so one way or another her ship was coming to pick them up.

With transportation dealt with, she reached into the lower left pocket on her pants and pulled out a set of heavy duty cuffs. Top of the line, they were supposedly escape proof. If he did somehow manage to break free, she was so getting her money back.

By the time her ship arrived a few minutes later she'd locked Riddick up, put her weapons and jacket back on, and was in the process of dragging him the thirty or so feet to the street. It took ten minutes to get him onboard and properly locked in, and then she was headed back to space once again.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own Riddick or anything associated with said series.

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Riddick awoke to the sound of metal hitting metal and nearly opened his eyes to see what was going on before realizing his goggles were no longer in place. He was about to ask if he could get them back when he felt them being slipped back over his head.

"Sorry about that, I meant to put them back on earlier but completely forgot."

Looking up at the woman before him he tried to figure out how she'd known he was awake. He hadn't moved or made any sort of sound, hell, even his breathing had remained the same. And yet somehow she'd picked up on it mere moments after he'd come to.

"Nice eyes by the way," she continued conversationally. "Not something I'd have done mind you, but the shine really adds to the whole badass look you've got going on there."

When he refused to respond, Lyra gave a half shrug and went back to what she'd been doing earlier. Sliding the crate she'd tossed up out of a storage compartment under the floor towards her chair with her foot, she plopped down in the seat and pushed the top aside so she could get to the supplies inside.

Watching as she pulled out a tube and began to rub some kind of salve on the darkening spots on her skin, he was pleased to see that she had actually taken some damage during their little scuffle. She hadn't given any signs of being injured, and her speed had remained constant the entire time, so a part of him had begun to doubt that any of his hits had made contact.

"You know," he began when she starting wrapping a particularly large bruise on her side with a bandage. "I'd have come with you willingly if you'd just asked."

Tying off the wrap, she sent a grin his way. "What, and miss the opportunity to have a real fight for a change? Where's the fun in that?" Tugging her tank top back down once she was finished, she kicked the crate out of the way to deal with later and turned around to face the console.

A bit annoyed at being brushed off so easily, Riddick gave his chains a hard tug, making sure to rattle them enough that the noise echoed throughout the entire cockpit. "You're awfully confident that these little bonds of yours are going to keep me in check. Aren't you even the least bit afraid I'll bust out of here and slit your throat while your back is turned?"

Not bothering to turn around, Lyra waved her hand dismissively. "Even if you did manage to escape, which you won't, you'll never be able to sneak up on me. I'd let you wander the ship if I wasn't worried about you breaking something."

She was cocky that was for sure, but then she had every right to be. Okay, so technically she'd taken him out with a cheap shot, but the fact that she'd been close enough to pull something like that off spoke volumes about her skill. And while he had managed to do some damage, she'd made sure that while painful, none of his hits hindered her movements or left anything more than a bruise. He'd seriously underestimated her.

Since her attention was elsewhere he allowed himself the opportunity to take in his surroundings. He'd seen ships like this before, but it was obvious she'd done some major remodeling to this particular one. The electronic equipment, what he could see of it anyway, looked to be top of the line, not something you usually saw in a ship this size. There were several locked racks filled with weapons, most of which he figured she got illegally seeing as they weren't your average guns, but the locking mechanisms on those puppies would take hours to crack, if he was lucky.

There were two hallways, one on either side of him, and if he remembered the layout of this particular craft correctly one led to a makeshift galley and the other to what passed for a bedroom and bath.

Had he not known she was a merc before, a quick glance of her ship would've told him everything he needed to know. It was practical, reliable, and filled with all sorts of deadly toys. Including the nice contraption she had rigged up for him in the middle of the main part of the ship. The only thing missing as far as he could tell was the cryo gear that seemed to be standard on merc ships. Spending so much time in space, it was practically a necessity for anyone in the business of tracking bounties.

It was also helpful in keeping said bounties manageable; much easier to transport someone who's under. Not that the stuff ever worked on him.

Moving his eyes back to the setup that was holding him in place, Riddick frowned. He'd seen all kinds of holds before, broken out of most of them, but he grudgingly had to admit that he wouldn't be able to bust himself free this time without some kind of outside help. Strapped to a chair with a thick leather belt around his chest, waist and thighs, his ankles were locked together with some impressive looking cuffs that attached to a two-inch metal ring which was stuck to the floor. His wrists were chained to the chair beneath him as well as several other rings that were located on the floor just behind his shoulders. On top of that there was some sort of collar around his neck with a chain that ran all the way to the ceiling. He could move his head, arms and legs a few inches in any direction, but that was all the leeway he had. Whoever had designed this particular beauty knew what they were doing.

She was perfectly silent when she moved, and if he hadn't picked up her unique spicy scent as she neared his temporary prison he might have jumped when she spoke.

"What do you think, nice huh?" she asked, pointing at the elaborate system she'd rigged shortly after she'd bought the ship. "I took the best, and made it better."

"Not bad," he admitted. "Seems a bit of an overkill to me though. Once you put someone in cryo they don't move around all that much."

"Don't use the stuff. Figure if I've got to be awake my _guest_ may as well suffer too."

Before he could ask why, the computer screen behind her came to life and she spun around with a confused look on her face. Slipping into the chair, she pressed her finger down on one of the buttons and waited for the signal to connect.

"Lyriana Marie Holden, what in the name of hell do you think you're doing?!"

Cringing, he only used her full name when he was seriously pissed off, she rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "I take it you've heard then?"

"Everyone in the 'verse has heard by now!" the grey haired man on the video screen snapped. "Going after Riddick by yourself, I thought we raised you with more brains than that!"

Despite being well into his sixties, Markum Tenner was a force to be reckoned with. Born and raised on the Tanker, a sturdily built ship that could accommodate a crew of twenty with ease, he took over as Captain when his father died and has been in charge of the best group of mercs around ever since. It was an honor to be part of his crew, and Lyra was extremely grateful for everything he'd done for her and her mother.

"I know you don't like me being out here on my own, but I can take care of myself old man. You should know that better than anyone; you helped trained me after all."

Running a hand over his face in exasperation, Markum released a heavy sigh before shaking his head. "I never said you couldn't, but this is _Riddick_ we're talking about here. Not exactly your run of the mill criminal that one. He's dangerous, cunning, and one hell of a fighter."

Her hand moved to her injured side as she remembered precisely how good he was, freezing when the man on the screen narrowed his eyes. Wracking her brain for any excuse that would throw him off, she saw his eye begin to twitch and knew it was a lost cause.

"He's right behind you isn't he?" he asked, already knowing the answer. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he took a deep breath before continuing. "How bad?"

"Nothing to worry about," she replied truthfully. "A few cuts and bruises, but other than that I'm perfectly fine."

Giving her a serious look, he threw his hands up in the air in defeat. "Well seeing as there's nothing I can do about it now, I suppose I'll just have to say . . . excellent work. Your mother would be proud."

Beaming with pride, she smiled at the man who was the closest thing she'd had to a father. "Thanks."

Markum was silent for a moment before asking, "So, you going to tell me why you decided to go after the big fish all of a sudden? You in some sort of trouble? Cause if you are you know I'll help out in any way I can."

"It's not for me," Lyra said with a shake of her head. "I got my friend into a bad situation so I'm going to make up for it by giving him enough for his family to live on for awhile."

"That's one hell of a payday to give away there kid."

"You know me; I never cared about the money anyway." He laughed at their inside joke and she grinned in response. Hearing a voice in the background, she cocked her head to the side curiously. "You got somewhere you need to be?"

"Yeah, sorry to cut this short, but we're on our way to Chariz to drop off a couple of bounties and I need to get the paperwork ready for their transfers. We'll be there for a few weeks to resupply and relax, so once you ditch your cargo why don't you come visit for awhile. The guys will be happy to see you, I know Cane's itching to spar with you again, and I haven't had a decent conversation since I saw you last."

"Sounds good," she said nodding. "If all goes well I'll see you in about a week." Waving, she clicked off the screen and leaned back in her chair. She didn't get to see her old crew as often as she'd like, but they still got together once or twice a year to catch up, and as always she was really looking forward to spending time with them.

"So, Lyriana is it?"

There was just one tiny little thing she had to deal with before then.

"It's Lyra," she snapped over her shoulder. "Only Markum is allowed to call me that."

Riddick held his hands up in surrender. "Lyra it is then."

Giving him a curt nod, she punched in the coordinates to the nearest slam. Originally she'd been planning on taking him somewhere more secure, like Butcher Bay, but that would add another few weeks to her trip and she'd miss meeting up with the Tanker. Instead she chose a much smaller prison, which she had no doubt he could bust out of with his eyes closed and both hands tied behind his back.

She'd just finished adjusting the ship's direction so it was on the correct course when she heard Riddick speak up.

"You do know I'm worth more dead, right?"

Giving him a look that implied he was an idiot, she rolled her eyes. "Of course. I wouldn't be much of a bounty hunter if I couldn't read the warrants now would I."

When she didn't say anything else, he pressed on. "If you know that then why haven't you ghosted me yet? You could've easily done so back on the planet instead of hauling my ass around."

"True, but I don't kill people for money. If the guys who run the prison want you dead they're more than welcome to bury you in a ditch for all I care, as soon as they pay me my fee of course. Until then I'll keep you alive and, for the most part, healthy."

Shrugging the best he could tied up the way he was, Riddick dropped the subject. He'd found out all he'd needed to know anyway. A merc who was only in it for the cash wouldn't deal in anything else. One who thought of it as a job, however, would likely have a code they followed which usually made them easier to _negotiate_ with.

The pair was silent for some time, each lost in their own thoughts, when Lyra wrinkled her nose and turned around suddenly. "You really stink," she stated bluntly, pushing herself to her feet and making her way towards his chair. "If I let you out to shower, will you behave?"

"Cross my heart," he replied, looking the picture of innocence.

Raising her eyebrow, she shook her head in amusement. "Alright, give me a minute to get things ready for you."

She disappeared down the hall to his right and was gone for a couple of minutes, giving him plenty of time to plan out several different ways of trying to get the upper hand while he was loose.

Walking up to him she gave him a pointed look, promising all kinds of hell if he tried anything. When he tipped his head slightly in acknowledgment, she went about releasing the chains that held his wrists and ankles in place. He did nothing more than stretch his arms once he was free so she went around behind him and unfastened the collar around his neck. Stepping back, she motioned to the remaining straps around his body. "You can remove those yourself."

Keeping his movements slow and deliberate, he undid the belts holding him down and rose to his feet. Popping his neck, he shifted his shoulders around to relieve some of the tension.

"Down the hall, door on the left," Lyra said, jerking her thumb in the direction she was referring to. "I left you some soap, a towel, and a change of clothes. Oh, and you won't find anything useful back there for whatever escape plan you've concocted, so don't waste your time looking." Since there was nothing more to say, she turned her back to him and went back to her chair.

He remained where he was for a few moments, but she soon heard his footsteps heading down the hall, the noise fading once he closed the bathroom door, and she allowed herself to relax slightly. She'd meant what she'd said about him not being able to sneak up on her, no one had ever been able to get the drop on her before, but it was a tossup whether she'd be able to beat him again in a fight if it came down to that. Despite her lineage and the training drilled into her by both her mother and the crew of the Tanker, she had her doubts. Riddick was one seriously powerful SOB.

Choosing not to think about it any longer, the worst that would happen is he'd take her ship and she'd have to track his ass down and gut him for it, she began digging around in one of the compartments near her feet for something to read. He may have a long list of kills tacked onto his name, but nothing about him screamed cold-blooded murderer. So long as she didn't piss him off too badly she figured she'd be fine.

When he came back into the room ten minutes later she had kicked her feet up on the console and was nose deep in a book, looking far too relaxed for someone with a dangerous convict free on her ship. She was dressed a bit differently then when they'd fought, something he hadn't noticed earlier what with his attention being focused on more important things like how to bust free from his shackles, in dark skintight pants that had an empty holster strapped to her thigh and he figured she must've taken a shower herself before he'd woken up. It wasn't exactly relative to the situation at hand, but would explain the soft floral smell he'd picked up when she was releasing him that was just barely masking her normal scent.

Since she appeared to be weaponless at the moment, those clothes of hers left no place to hide anything, and hadn't so much as flinched when he'd stepped into the cockpit, he slowly crept towards her chair.

There was a gun aimed at him after three steps and he froze, one foot hovering inches above the ground.

"I said I wouldn't kill you," she said without looking away from the book. "That doesn't mean I won't shoot you in the knee if you try and come any closer."

Holding his hands up, Riddick took several steps back for good measure. "No need to get violent; I just wanted to know if you really were as good as you said. Call it, professional curiosity."

"Stupidity is more like it," Lyra muttered with a roll of her eyes before folding down the corner of the page she was on and setting the book down on the console. Dropping her feet to the floor she snapped her gun back into its holster and turned to face the man behind her who was now wearing a pair of Markum's old dark blue cargo pants and a black t-shirt. "I know your brain's going a mile a minute trying to figure out the best way for you to get out of this, but you may as well give up. I don't give a damn about sob stories, care even less for seduction techniques, you'll never get close enough to be able to use your brute strength to your advantage, and there's nothing you can get to onboard that will aide you in your escape. You're on my ship now and you're not getting off until I say so."

She paused momentarily before adding, "Now, be a good little prisoner and strap yourself back in."

It had been a very long time since he'd been so completely overwhelmed by an opponent, not since he was a child, but every time he thought he might be able to get ahead of the woman she seemed to already be there laughing at him. It was really starting to irritate him.

Giving a shrug to show being locked up didn't bother him, he sat down and cinched the three belts back into place, making sure to pull them extra tight to show he was being thorough.

As soon as he was locked back in he assumed she was going to finish tying him down, instead she stood up and headed down the hallway opposite the one he'd used a few minutes prior. She wasn't gone long, and when she came back in she tossed a pouch and a small bottle of water to him before taking a seat once more.

"Eat up," she said, tearing off the top of her package and sucking down whatever meal she'd happened to grab.

Well that explained why she'd left him mostly free. Checking the containers in his hands for any sign of tampering, he eventually deemed it safe and dug in. He hadn't eaten for almost two days, having run out of supplies on that merc ship he'd taken when he'd left the planet. Before catching wind of her at the bar he'd planned on getting himself a decent meal. A shower and clothes had been next on his list.

Looking at the food in his hands and the clean outfit she'd found for him he reasoned that perhaps she wasn't all _that_ bad. For a merc anyway.

They ate in silence, Lyra grabbing the trash from Riddick as soon as he was finished and tossing it into a garbage bin along with her own. Wiping a few drops of water from the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand she stood up and headed over to her prisoner. Without a word she reattached the various pieces and made sure he was securely tied down by tugging on the chains and checking each of the rings for any problems. Seeing that everything was in proper working order, she backed away with a nod.

Normally she slept in her room, regardless of whether or not she had a bounty tied up on board, but he was anything but normal so instead she grabbed an emergency blanket from a cupboard in the side wall. "Want one?" she asked, raising the dark green blanket into the air. He shook his head and she closed the door with her hip as she wrapped the scratchy wool material around her upper body. "Suit yourself."

The pilot's seat wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep, but it had been a long few days and she was out moments after she leaned her head back and closed her eyes.

Riddick watched her for some time, paying special attention to her breathing to make sure she was in a deep sleep, before shifting his arm ever so slightly and causing the chain holding it to scrape gently against the chair. When she didn't move he tried one of his legs next, giving it a small, quick kick to up the noise level a bit more.

He continued on in the same manner, becoming louder with each tug and pull, until he finally got a reaction. She had turned onto her side after a fairly harsh yank of his wrist so he'd immediately stopped moving, waiting for her to fall back to sleep.

"I know what you're doing," she said suddenly, her voice thick with sleep. "But it's not going to work. I'm a light sleeper, kind of comes with the job, and no matter how slowly or quietly you move I will always hear you. Now kindly shut the hell up so I can sleep."

Chuckling at her tone, she sounded more like a whiny kid than a hardened merc, he tipped his head back and closed his eyes. May as well grab some shut eye himself seeing as there wasn't anything better to do at the moment.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own Riddick or anything associated with said series.

* * *

Over the next couple of days they fell into a sort of routine. Lyra would let him up to wander around in the morning after breakfast, then again after dinner, and the rest of the time he'd only be strapped in with the belts. Except for when she slept, she always made sure to lock him down tight before closing her eyes.

In the beginning they'd talk about mundane things whenever one of them got bored, like weapons, ships, and occasionally politics just to keep the conversation interesting, and eventually started swapping stories about their lives.

Riddick told her how he'd wound up on the planet she'd tracked him to, a little disappointed that she hadn't been more impressed by his title as the Necromonger's Lord Marshal, and also about his fight for survival when the Hunter Gratzner crashed, figuring she'd find those tales more interesting than his many prison breaks. She'd been far more intrigued by the strange new creatures he'd come across than any of his fighting skills or heroics.

For her part, Lyra explained that the scar on her face had come from her first solo bounty hunt. She'd been overly cocky and hadn't bothered to do her research properly; her target had managed to get in a lucky shot because of it. She also spoke some about her childhood, explaining how she'd ended up running with mercs without going into too much detail. He _was_ still a criminal and there was no way she was going to give away any real information on her old crew.

All in all things had become rather relaxed between the two.

On the third day, a little over eighteen hours away from their destination, a warning sound began blasting throughout the ship and Lyra immediately locked Riddick down so she could deal with the problem without extra distractions. She'd been mumbling to herself ever since.

"It can't be . . . but what if it is? No, it's been almost twenty-five years, I could be wrong," she rambled as she sat staring intently at the video screen. Doing a quick calculation, she tapped her chin in thought before coming to a decision. "Eh, worst case scenario I lose half a day's travel." Punching in the new coordinates, she spun around. "Well it looks like you're going to be stuck with me for a bit longer than planned."

"Where we headed?" Riddick asked curiously. "Got another bounty to pick up?"

"Does it look like I've got room for another freeloader?" she replied jokingly. "No, it's nothing like that. I just need to check out a nearby planet really quick. Shouldn't take more than a few hours and then we'll be back on our way."

Knowing he wasn't going to get any more information out of her, he shrugged. "I'm in no hurry. I may be chained up, but I don't have to fight for my meals and have some pretty nice scenery to look at. Plus, this place smells a hell of a lot better than any slam I've ever been in."

Shaking her head at the grin he sent her way, she stood up. "Keep talking that way and you'll find yourself wishing you'd never busted out of prison to begin with," she said as she disappeared down the hall.

Chuckling at her annoyed tone, he leaned his head back as far as the collar would allow and closed his eyes.

ooooo

Lyra didn't come back into the cockpit until the planet they were heading to was fast approaching on the video screen. Her hair was slightly damp and pulled into a loose ponytail at the base of her neck, and she was wearing camo cargo pants and a snug fitting dark green t-shirt. Taking a seat, she ran through the standard landing checks before bringing the ship around and heading in.

It took a bit of looking to find a decent place to set down, the terrain was too mountainous where she'd originally planned on landing, but she eventually found a grassy plain at the base of a hill that was more than large enough to accommodate the ship.

Shutting everything down, she made her way over to the ramp and took a deep breath before smashing her hand down on the button that would lower it. Watching as it slowly slid open to reveal bushy trees in the distance with a small river flowing around them, she breathed in the scents around her. A smile slid across her face at the familiar smells. "After all this time, I've finally found my way home."

She was moving to step out onto the ground when a voice behind her froze her in her tracks.

"Well what do ya know; it looks like I finally made it to Furya. Guess Vaako wasn't the only one who knew where to find it after all."

Spinning around, Lyra was back in front of Riddick in an instant with a knife aimed directly at his heart. "How do you know that name?" she demanded with narrowed eyes. "Who did you hear it from?"

Glancing down at the blade, he raised an eyebrow as if to say 'and I should answer you why?' Ignoring the pain when she pressed the knife in hard enough to break skin, he gave her a cocky grin. "If you're planning on torturing the answers out of me you should probably know that being at the mercy of a beautiful woman is more of a turn on for me than anything else."

She was seriously tempted to prove him wrong, but right now she needed to know exactly how much he knew so she decided to change tactics. Not giving herself time to think about all the things that could go horribly wrong as a result of her insane plan, she removed the blade and placed it back in the sheath strapped to the waistband of her pants. "Alright, let's try this again," she began. "If you answer my questions, I might be inclined to allow you a little free time outside. What do you say?"

Pretending to think it over, he finally shrugged. "I suppose it would be nice to get some fresh air for awhile. You've got three questions; make them count."

Unsure whether he was serious about the limit or not, she began with what she considered the most important. "How did you hear about Furya?"

"That's easy, and old Air Elemental told me about it a few years back. Mentioned something about a prophecy I think," he answered vaguely.

Lyra released the breath she'd been holding. If he was telling the truth then that meant he wasn't one of the monsters that had destroyed her people. But then if he wasn't hunting her kind, why in the world would he be interested in coming to this planet? She'd planned on asking that next, but when she opened her mouth that wasn't what came out. "How in the hell did you know where we were anyway? There are no records of this place so you wouldn't have been able to tell from space, and it's not like you can turn around and look outside."

"The same way you did." Seeing her slightly confused look, he elaborated. "I used my nose."

"That's impossible," she said, shaking her head in denial. "To be able to tell something like that from scent alone you'd have to be a . . . oh hell no. You have got to be kidding me!" Running her hand over her face she took a few calming breaths and then looked her captive square in the eye.

"You're a damn Furyan aren't you? No wonder you're so good at being one step ahead of everyone, it's in your blood."

"Guilty as charged," he replied with a smirk. "I have to admit it never even crossed my mind that you might be one as well. Does explain why I haven't had much luck getting free of you though. And why you were able to take me down in the first place. Thought I might have been slipping for awhile there; glad to see that's not the case."

When she remained silent, Riddick rattled his chains. "How about you ask your last question so you can undo these? Don't particularly want to sit around all day."

She wasn't one to go back on her word, but now that she knew what he was she was less inclined to allow him outside without some kind leash. To give herself time to think up a new strategy, she asked something pointless to keep him busy. "Who's this Vaako person you mentioned earlier?"

"One of the Necro Commanders. He was vying for my title so he used my desire to get here to his advantage and had one of his henchmen ditch me on that messed up planet. Sneaky little bastard that one."

Remembering an old tracker drone Markum had given her years ago, she went to one of the storage cupboards on her right and began digging through it while asking, "And you actually believed he knew how to find Furya? What in the world made you think that?"

Annoyed with her tone, she'd made it sound like he was incredibly stupid, he nearly growled. "The fact that he worked directly under the psycho responsible for our people's massacre probably had something to do with my decision."

It took a few seconds for what he'd said to fully sink in, but when it did she forgot all about what she'd been searching for and spun around. "Let me get this straight," she began, clenching her hands at her sides so she wouldn't be tempted to bash his head against something. "Not only did you meet the bastard who took out our race, but you joined his freaking crew?! Why the hell didn't you ghost those assholes the first chance you got?"

A bit surprised by her hostility, it looked as if she was about ready to tear him limb from limb, Riddick shrugged. The thought hadn't really crossed his mind to be honest, but he wasn't about to tell her that or she might actually go homicidal on him. "I killed their leader, the one who was behind everything, why bother with the rest?"

"Why?" Lyra bit out angrily. "Oh I don't know, how about because they're murderers!"

"If I ghosted every single person I came across that had killed someone my body count would be so high no database would be able to hold it all. Besides, the Furyan's were destroyed around thirty-five years ago. I doubt many of the current Necro's had anything to do with it. Would you have preferred I killed innocent people?"

Opening her mouth to respond, she slowly closed it without saying anything. As much as it pained her to admit it, he had a point. She wanted to see those responsible for killing her kind held accountable, but she couldn't condone a senseless slaughter. That would make her the same as the one who'd destroyed her family.

"Yeah, I didn't think so." He watched as several different emotions danced across her face and was a little surprised by how much concealed rage he saw. She truly hated the Necro's for what they did. "I'm guessing you've known what you were for a long time, huh."

Unclenching her fists once she'd calmed down, she nodded. "All my life. My mother never hid it from me, said we should be proud of who we were. Taught me everything I know about Furya and our race. She brought me here when I was five, but I was so young and couldn't remember where _here_ was exactly. Been searching for this place for years; just my luck I happen to stumble upon it with company."

Eyeing him curiously she asked, "Why, didn't your parents ever tell you anything about it?"

"Doubt it. Why bother saying anything to something you're planning on tossing in the trash?"

He'd said it so nonchalantly, as though what happened didn't bother him at all, but his face said differently and she moved without thinking. Placing her hands on his cheeks she touched her forehead to his the same way her mother had done to her as a child. "I'm sorry."

Unsure what she'd been planning Riddick had watched her carefully as she'd come closer. He hadn't expected her to touch him, or to hear her heartfelt apology, and was torn between being irritated that she pitied him and the strange sense of calm that had suddenly fallen over him.

As if just realizing what she'd done, Lyra jumped back and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Um, sorry about that. I don't usually get into other people's personal space, but you looked so sad and I wanted to help."

"By what? Apologizing for something that happened before you were born? Sure, that'll do a lot of good."

Narrowing her eyes at the sarcasm in his last sentence, she was about to snap at him when she realized he probably had no idea what she'd done. "I was referring to the gesture," she said, motioning to first her forehead and then his. "My mother told me it was a Furyan calming technique used on children. I know you're not a kid, but I figured it might work all the same."

It had. He hadn't felt this at peace since . . . he couldn't remember when. Not that that made touching him okay or anything, but he decided he could let it slide . . . this time. Noticing she was fidgeting slightly he tipped his head in her direction.

Taking it as a good sign, she breathed a sigh of relief. For a second she'd been worried that he might be furious with her, and even though he was locked up she'd rather not deal with an angry Furyan onboard her precious ship. The poor thing likely wouldn't survive.

Staring at her prisoner she decided to forgo any form of tracking device and allow him to wander in peace. Now that she knew he was a Furyan it would make tracking him even easier as she knew far more about their inherent instincts than he did, so she was certain she could catch him again . . . eventually.

Although she doubted she'd put all that much effort into hunting him down if he did decide to take off. Turning in one of her own for some quick cash didn't sit well with her, and while it was true she needed the funds, there were other bounties out there she could go after. Sure it would take quite a few of them to equal what Riddick was worth, but at least her conscience would be clear.

Stepping forward she once again released his chains and collar and pointed outside. "As promised, you are now free to roam about. I warn you though, any funny business and I may be forced to reconsider my 'no killing' policy."

Unlatching the belts he stood up and gave her a mock salute. "Yes maam," he said with a smirk, and an instant later he was gone.

Walking off her ship she yelled, "I want you back here in an hour, and don't even think about trying to escape!"

Grinning at the laugh that echoed back to her, she punched in the locking code just in case he decided to try and sneak back on while she was away. After making certain it was secure, she set off towards the stream she'd seen earlier. It was time to have some fun.

Less than ten minutes later she'd taken off her shoes and socks, rolled up her pant legs, and had waded knee deep into the water. Clear, clean and crisp, she drank her fill before splashing around under the midday sun.

When her toes started to get all pruney she stepped out of the stream and flopped onto her back on the grass next to her shoes. Using her arms as a pillow, she watched the clouds dance across the sky and allowed herself to truly relax.

Closing her eyes, she remembered the time she'd spent with her mother when they'd come here years ago. They'd spent hours wandering around, Selena showing her daughter where she'd lived as a child and telling her all about her family and friends. That was also when she'd learned about her father and what had really happened to him.

She'd always known that he'd died saving them, but hadn't known from what. Up till that point she'd believed it had been some random attack. Finding out they were being hunted was a lot for someone so young to take in, and she didn't truly understand everything she'd been told until she was older, not until her mother had been sent into an ambush by a greedy crewmate.

That was when she realized that while memories of their kind had faded somewhat over the years, there were still whispers of those willing to pay a decent fee for the head of any Furyan, be it man, woman or child. So with the help of Markum she'd altered her back-story a touch, turning herself into the man's niece and destroying every record of who she really was, but she never forgot the time she'd spent on Furya and knew that no matter what some day she'd come back.

And she finally had.

Breathing in, she released the breath slowly and sighed in contentment. A part of her wanted nothing more than to stay there forever, but that would mean giving up the life she'd worked so hard to build for herself and leaving behind the only family she had left. That wasn't something she was ready to do yet. Maybe in the future she'd come back and settle down here, make herself a cozy little house and live out her days in peace.

Now, however, it was time to head back to her ship and see if her wanderer had returned.

Slipping her socks and shoes back on Lyra pushed herself to her feet and set off on her way. She wasn't in a hurry, stopping every so often to smell a pretty flower or watch a bird in flight, and it took her nearly twice as long on the return trip.

The hour time limit had long since passed by the time she found herself standing next to her ship and she wasn't the least bit surprised to see that Riddick was nowhere in sight. Giving her surroundings a quick check, she shrugged. "I can't find him, oh well," she said as she punched in the code to unlock and lower the ramp. "Guess I'll just have to move on to the next bounty."

As soon as the ramp touched the ground she stepped onboard, and was halfway inside when she heard someone call out to her. Turning around, the smile that had been forming quickly dropped from her face when she found out it wasn't who she'd thought it was.

"Rumor has it you've managed to snag yourself a pretty big payday there girly," the tall man holding a shotgun said with a grin. He had brown hair shaved close to his head, and was wearing a dark green vest that was covered with shell casings and fitted black pants.

"Fox," Lyra sneered, her hand slowly moving for the blade at her waist. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Same thing as you, just trying to make a living," he replied, raising the barrel of his gun so it was aimed at her chest. "Now why don't you be a good little girl and drop that weapon you've got stashed behind your back before I blow you in half."

Narrowing her eyes she contemplated going for it, but decided it was too risky given his choice of gun. It was fairly easy to judge the trajectory of a bullet so as to avoid a fatal shot; a shotgun blast was a completely different story.

Not making any sudden moves, she slid her blade free from its sheath and dropped it on the ground at her feet. Kicking it away from her, she held her hands up as her mind began planning a way out of her current predicament.

Nodding, Fox shoved the knife out onto the grass with his foot before lowering his gun slightly. "Very good. Keep behaving and you'll be on your way in no time." Stepping closer to her, he glanced over at the empty chair sitting in the middle of the ship and raised an eyebrow. "Where's the prisoner? You got him stowed somewhere else?"

Before she could respond two more men rounded the corner of the ramp. They were dressed in similar attire to the man next to her, though the one with the blonde ponytail had a small pistol in his hand and the other with chin length black hair was wielding a large curved blade.

"There's nobody else here," the blonde said in frustration. "Where the hell is our target?"

"Yeah, you said he'd be here," the other one added. "You better not have lied to us."

"Crew trouble?" Lyra asked curiously, and then shaking her head she continued. "First rule of the hunt, never run with the greedy. Didn't you learn anything from your short stint on the Tanker? Can't trust a merc who's only in it for the money."

"Shut up," Fox snapped, pointing his gun at her once again. Turning towards the other men he barked out, "We'll get him. Now go out and patrol, I'll deal with her myself."

When they disappeared he asked, "Well?"

"Busted out as soon as I landed," she said with a shrug. "Guess he was too much for me to handle."

"That's a load of bull. You haven't lost a bounty yet and you expect me to believe that this one just happens to break free on a planet that's uninhabited, and so far out of the way no one would ever stumble upon it. Yeah, I ain't that stupid."

Nudging her with the barrel, he jerked his head in the direction of the chair. "Since you're being so uncooperative, how about we try something else? Take a seat."

Moving enough to make him think she was following orders, she spun around, using her left elbow to shove the gun aside and bringing her right arm around so she could punch him in the jaw. He stumbled backwards and she followed up with a kick to the stomach which made him finally release his weapon.

Hearing it clatter to the ground she punched him in the side, smirking when he began to wheeze, and then grabbed his wrist and flipped him over her shoulder and into the side wall of the ship. "The next time you think about coming after me, I want you to remember this moment," she said, bending down so she was at eye level with him. When his eyes rolled up into the back of his head she kicked him twice more for good measure and nodded in satisfaction.

"Now to get this trash off my ship and finish dealing with the rest of his crew." Grabbing the unconscious man by the leg she heard a soft click moments before she felt something prick her neck. Pulling the dart free, she had barely enough time to turn around before the tranquilizer kicked in and she sank to the floor.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own Riddick or anything associated with said series.

* * *

When she came to the first thing Lyra noticed was the unfamiliar weight around her wrists and ankles, the second was that her head felt like it was stuffed with cotton. Blinking her eyes open slowly, she wasn't the least bit surprised to find herself tied up like a prisoner on her ship. Not very well mind you, they'd muddled up the chains so she had a lot more movement than she should and they hadn't bothered with the collar, but despite their apparent incompetence she was still locked down which put her in a very bad mood.

Their method of putting her out only intensified her ire. "You friggin _tranq'd_ me?" she growled, glaring daggers at Fox where he stood speaking with the two men from earlier. "What the hell Fox! Can't beat me in a fair fight so you have one of your boys shoot me in the back? Some kind of merc you turned out to be. No wonder Markum kicked your ass out so fast."

"You're right boss, she is a feisty little thing," the blonde one said, a salacious grin forming on his face. "I say we keep her around for awhile. See how long it takes to break that spirit of hers."

The black haired merc shook his head. "If you ask me she's more trouble than she's worth. I vote we ghost her right here. Can't cause any problems if she's dead."

"Shut up, both of you," Fox snapped. "I told you when we took this job that nobody is to lay a hand on her but me. Now why don't you go and send out the drones. I want to get off this rock as soon as possible."

Ignoring their mutters as they walked away, Lyra raised an eyebrow at the man she'd traveled with for a little over a month. "Did you seriously just say what I think you did?" she asked incredulously. "I know you never had an abundance of brains or anything, but thinking you'll ever be allowed to touch me is a whole new level of stupid even for you."

Fox snorted. "Don't flatter yourself. I only told them that to keep them alive. I've fought with you before, know how good you are, and have no desire to lose my entire crew before they actually make themselves useful."

"So why not kill me? Like the man said, it'd make things a hell of a lot easier."

"In the short term, yes. In the long run . . . having the Tanker on my ass would be very bad for business," he replied, clearly having already thought about it.

Lyra had to agree. When Markum got the news he'd make it his life's mission to hunt Fox down and make him pay. Not that the crew of the Tanker wouldn't be pissed when they found out she'd been attacked, but that would only earn the man a severe beating. Killing her would bring him a fate worse than death.

"Instead I'll steal your bounty, strand you on this deserted planet, and be on my merry way. By the time you manage to get word to your _precious_ family, I'll be basking on a sunny beach somewhere you'll never find me," he said with a grin, stepping close enough that he could rattle the chains on her wrist to show he'd already accomplished part of his plan. "If you'd be so kind as to tell me where your prisoner has disappeared to we'll be out of your hair."

She shrugged before answering. "As I already told you, he broke free. Took off as soon as I landed and I haven't seen him since."

"I know what you said, but I also know you wouldn't have let him out without some kind of tracker on him. Give me his location and I promise to unchain you before we leave so you at least have a fighting chance."

It was obvious Fox was starting to get irritated with her because his tone was becoming sharper, but even if she wanted to, which she didn't, she couldn't give him the information he was looking for since she truly didn't have it. "Sorry, can't help you. But if you guys need help tracking him down you know where to find me."

Raising his hand as if to strike her, he gave a frustrated growl before dropping his arm and storming off the ship. When he was out of sight he called back, "When I find Riddick, and I _will_, I'll make you regret your decision!"

Listening to his footsteps fade away, she shook her head. "You won't find him unless he wants you to, and if he does, _you'll_ regret ever coming after us in the first place," she muttered to herself.

Seeing as she was finally alone, Lyra started searching for the metal pick she'd hidden within the armrest of the chair. She wasn't stupid enough to think she'd never be beaten, so during the design phase she'd snuck in something she could use to pick the lock of the cuffs. In case she ever wound up in her current situation.

Unfortunately she'd forgotten which side it was on, and had done such a great job of making it blend in that it took her nearly ten minutes to find it. Grinning in triumph when she finally located it, she flipped it around in her hand and slid one end into the small locking mechanism that was holding the chain around her right wrist. A couple of quick moves later and it popped open, allowing her to pull her arm free.

She was about to undo her other wrist when she heard voices returning. Shoving her arm back through the chains, and hoping that no one noticed the cuff was slightly open, she sat back and waited.

A few seconds later the blonde haired man came strolling into her line of sight and she eyed him curiously. "Can I help you with something?"

"You know," he began. "Fox has told me a few things about you in passing. Said you grew up on the Tanker, and even trained under Markum Tenner himself. What I want to know," he continued, moving closer and running his hand up her leg. "Is if you'd be interested in making a _deal_."

"If you touching me is part of it, you can go to hell," Lyra replied calmly. "Actually, you can go to hell regardless. Right now in fact." Before he had a chance to react, she'd yanked her arm free and wrapped it firmly around his neck. Pulling his body down towards hers, she locked her hand beneath her other arm and tightened her grip.

Smirking as he gasped for air and dug his fingers into her forearm to try and break loose, she refused to give an inch. "You know, there are basically only two reasons I'll kill someone," she said conversationally as he struggled against her. "The first, obviously, is if they're trying to kill me. The second . . . I guess you've figured that one out on your own huh."

"That's enough of that," a voice she recognized as belonging to the shorter black haired merc said as cold steel was pressed against the back of her head. "Release him, or I'll redecorate the interior of your ship with your brain."

Giving the man she was holding one last painful squeeze, Lyra dropped her arm to her side and watched as he stumbled backwards while sucking in air and rubbing at his throat. When he narrowed his eyes she sent a smirk his way and said, "Feel free to stop by anytime, I'd be happy to kick your ass again."

He took a step forward only to be stopped by the man who still had a gun aimed at her head. "Ignore her Terry; she's just trying to get under your skin." Leaning down so his lips were next to her ear the merc at her side whispered, "I don't care what Fox says, you pull another stunt like that and I'll put a bullet right between your eyes. Understand?"

"Bad cop, got it," Lyra joked, grinning when she heard him growl. "By the way," she added, tilting her head around slightly so she could look him in the eye. "Where's that sword of yours?"

Caught off guard by the question, he raised an eyebrow curiously. "What's it matter to you?" he asked in return.

"Well, once I finish dealing with all of you I plan on adding it to my collection, and I'd rather not have to hunt it down," she replied cheekily, wincing slightly when the butt of the gun was brought down on the side of her head.

As he stomped off Terry called out mockingly, "Ignore her Steel!"

Lyra couldn't see it, but was fairly certain Steel had flipped Terry off if the blonde man's chuckle was anything to go by.

When it was just the two of them again, she nudged the chains next to her arm and cocked her head to the side. "You planning on locking me up again there Terry, or are you too afraid to come near me now?"

"I'm not _scared_," he scoffed. "But I'm not an idiot either. I'll wait and let Fox deal with you when he gets back from the ship. Until then I'll keep an eye on you from over here."

"Big mistake," she said with a shake of her head. "You should always make sure your prisoner is secure, otherwise they might do something like this." Shoving the small pick between her teeth she reached up and grabbed the chain hanging above her, and using it as leverage, pulled her feet upwards with enough force to snap a link in the chain holding her ankles together. With only her left hand still attached to the chair, she flipped herself over the side and used it as cover while she quickly undid the last of her bonds.

Unfortunately she was on the wall opposite her weapons stash so she was completely unarmed, but at the moment so was he. Knowing she wouldn't have much time before his buddy came back, she leaped up and dove at the merc who appeared to still be stunned by her escape.

Sweeping out her leg she caught him in the ankle, jabbing her elbow into his side when he stumbled and tried to regain his balance. He was bent slightly at the waist, one arm wrapping protectively around his middle, and she used his new position to her advantage by grabbing his free arm and twisting his body around so she could flip him over her shoulder.

With his arm still held in her grasp, she shoved her foot into his back and forced him to lie face down on the ground. Making sure to keep his arm at just the right angle, she didn't want to dislocate it just keep him in line, she reached over and removed the pistol he had holstered at his side. "Can't say I didn't warn you," she muttered, hitting him upside the head hard enough to knock him cold.

Releasing his arm, she was about to lock him into the chair when she heard not one, but two sets of footsteps approaching. Spinning around, she leveled her gun at the open ramp and waited for her next targets to appear.

Moments later Fox poked his head around the corner and she fired. The bullet missed, barely, but it got the message across loud and clear. She was free, and she was armed.

When no other attempt to enter was made, she began inching her way towards the console that would allow her to raise the ramp, figuring she could lock them outside and then take off. Sure she'd still have 'Mr. Touchy Feely' onboard, but she could ditch his ass on whatever planet she landed on next easily enough.

"I'm sure right now you're thinking you've got everything figured out," Fox's voice called out. "But you should probably know that we've already removed one of your power cells. That ship of yours won't be going anywhere."

Frowning, it wasn't like she had spare cells lying about, Lyra continued on her path. "That may be, but she's still got enough power to fire her weapons and that's good enough for now."

She was only a couple of feet away from her destination when she heard Fox bark out an order, and she dived against the wall as quickly as she could. Pressing herself flush against the metal behind her, she listened for the shots that were sure to come.

Time ticked by slowly and she was starting to wonder if perhaps she'd heard him wrong, but then Fox began yelling and she knew that wasn't the case.

"Hunter, where the hell are you?" he snapped. "I told you to take her out! Fire dammit!"

Still there was nothing, so she crept away from the wall to see Fox standing outside waving his arms around angrily and shouting into a small com device. Steel was still hiding, and whoever this Hunter was he obviously wasn't a threat at the moment, so she decided to make a run for it.

She'd barely made it three steps before an all too familiar voice spoke up.

"This belong to you?"

Lyra couldn't stop the smile that formed when she spotted Riddick waltz up and toss a body on the ground a short ways away from where Fox was standing. She really hadn't expected to see him again and was a little surprised at how happy she felt that he'd come back. Apparently the man was starting to grow on her.

No longer interested in her now that their true target had arrived, the two mercs turned their attention, and weapons, to Riddick who stood there looking bored.

"Put your hands on top of your head, slowly," Fox ordered, raising his shotgun so it was now aimed at the convict's heart.

Ignoring him, Riddick took in the scene before him and raised an eyebrow. "Friends of yours?" he asked, though it was obvious the question was rhetorical.

"Of course, can't you tell we're close? These guys are like family."

Laughing, Riddick shook his head. "You know, I'm starting to think you enjoy annoying me."

"It's certainly more fun than playing with this pathetic lot," Lyra replied with a shrug.

Obviously having had enough, Fox jammed his finger down on the trigger. He wasn't fast enough. Riddick had already anticipated his move and had rolled out of the way, dodging the blast entirely. Pushing himself to his feet he sprinted forward, a bullet nicking his left arm, and was on Steel before he had time to fire a second shot.

While Riddick dealt with the dark haired man, Lyra went after Fox. He was in the process of reloading when she plowed into his back and they both went sprawling onto the grass. She was back on her feet an instant before he was, both losing their guns during the fall.

"You sure you want to go through this again?" she questioned. "I mean you already know how this is going to end, so why don't you just forfeit now and save yourself the pain."

"Don't be so cocky," Fox sneered. "I only took your beating earlier to give Hunter enough time to set up a shot."

Raising an eyebrow, she snorted. "Let me get this straight. You didn't knock me out just so you could have someone else do it for you? Oh no, you must be really strong if you need to have others fight your battles for you. I'm positively shaking in my boots," she said sarcastically.

Ducking under the fist he sent flying at her face, she wrapped her hand around his wrist and, spinning on her heel, yanked his arm around his back. She'd planned on keeping it there, but was forced to release him when he brought his other arm around to try and pin her. Punching him in the ribs, she danced back out of reach when he sent one of his own towards her stomach, but miscalculated slightly and wound up taking part of the hit.

Rubbing what was certain to be a decent size bruise in the morning, she did a front flip, pushing off the ground with her hands and kicking him square in the jaw. Dropping her feet back down as he began to sway back and forth, she grabbed his head in her hands and slammed his face into the top of her head with enough force that it rattled her teeth and made her see stars.

He fell to the ground the moment she let him go, and after shaking her head to clear her vision, she moved to grab the guns. Sensing someone approaching she reacted on instinct, spinning around with her fist in the air ready to take on the new threat.

"Easy there now," Riddick said, catching her punch before it could connect. "I'm on your side."

Lowering her arm, Lyra rolled her eyes. "You're on no one's side but your own," she stated bluntly.

Not bothering to deny it, she did have a point, he tipped his head in the direction of the man near their feet. "What do you plan on doing with them?"

"No clue," she replied with a half shrug. "I'll figure something out once I've got my power cell back in place. Don't suppose you'd be interested in locking these guys up while I go hunting for their ship?"

"You sure you trust me alone with them? I may decide to turn on you if they wake up and offer me a better deal."

Raising an eyebrow, she gave him a look that said she clearly thought the idea was ridiculous. "You're not an idiot," was all she said before heading inside her ship. Grabbing several pairs of cuffs from one of the storage cupboards, she walked back outside and tossed them over while adding, "There's another one of them taking a nap inside; kindly put him with the rest of the garbage when you get the chance."

Snatching them out of the air, Riddick watched as she took off at a brisk jog and shook his head in amusement. Then he got to work.

It didn't take long for Lyra to find the ship, they'd landed on the other side of the hill where she'd brought hers down, and even less time to secure what she'd come for. With the power cell in hand she was about to head back when she caught sight of some black pants and goggles. A brilliant idea struck her and she began to laugh evilly as she set down the cell and started rummaging around the ship.

A short time later she had everything she needed in a pile on the floor so she grabbed the power cell, and Steel's sword she'd stumbled upon while wandering about, and made the short trek back.

Riddick was leaning up against the side of the ship with his hands shoved into his pockets when she returned and she sent him a grin. "I know what to do with our guests," she said, her voice filled with humor. When he looked at her curiously she motioned at the four men who were tied up on the ground. "First, help me drag them back to their ship. I'll explain everything once we get there."

Shrugging, he grabbed the body nearest him and hefted it over his shoulder causing Lyra to look at him like he was nuts. "Are you crazy . . . we'll take the bike. Just give me a sec to put this stuff away and I'll get it out."

Noticing the blade for the first time, he looked at her curiously. "New toy?"

"Yep," she grinned, twirling it around in her hand. "It's nice don't you think?"

Shaking his head, he tossed Fox down none to gently as she ducked inside her ship.

Adding the sword to her weapon collection, she secured the cage and made a mental note to expand it when she got some extra cash. It was starting to overflow. Turning around, she opened the floor panel that covered the power cells and shoved the one they'd stolen into place, slamming the lid closed once she'd made sure it had connected properly.

Sliding into her chair, she did a quick double check to make sure the ignition sequence was still in lockdown mode just in case Riddick got any ideas about leaving without her, and then punched several buttons and waited for the familiar hiss of the outer bay doors opening.

Once they finished, she walked back outside and headed around to what she lovingly referred to as 'The Beast'. She'd picked up the large three-wheeled vehicle a few years back and mainly used it for hauling cargo around since its wide backend made it ideal for carrying things. Of course, as with everything on her ship, she'd modified it slightly to give it extra horsepower and more speed, and had even mounted a submachine gun and rocket launcher on the side.

Hitting the start button she backed it off the ramp and drove it right up next to the mercs, which Riddick was so kind to load up for her without being asked. As soon as they were on board, she slid forward in the seat. "Want a lift?"

"I ain't one to turn down an opportunity to wrap my arms around a beautiful woman," he replied, slipping in behind her and lifting his arms up. A sharp elbow to the gut had him dropping them back to his side with a pained 'oomph'.

"Hands to yourself or I'll chop them off," she said as she gave the bike some gas and drove off.

A few minutes later she came to a stop, killing the engine at the base of the ramp that led inside the other ship. Climbing off, she chose to ignore the way Riddick's hands brushed against her when she moved and instead went right into explaining her plan.

"So, I found some goggles inside that kinda resemble yours and I thought it might be fun to dress-up one of them like you and program their ship to take them to the nearest merc outpost. And then to make things more interesting, I'll send out a broadcast alerting every merc in the vicinity that Riddick is onboard. They'll have ships on their ass in no time."

"You really think anyone will believe that _this_ crew managed to capture me?"

"That's why I'm going to give this one here a makeover," she replied, nudging Terry with her foot. "If I add a little video footage to the broadcast they'll have no reason to think otherwise."

"Okay, let me see if I understand things correctly. You're brilliant idea is to make other mercs believe that these guys have somehow snagged the biggest payday around so that they'll what? Attack them? What'll that accomplish exactly?" Riddick asked.

". . . um, it'll be fun?" When he raised an eyebrow she shrugged. "Well I can't kill them, and I'd rather not leave them here on Furya to taint the place with their stupidity, so kicking them loose is really the only option. But that doesn't mean I can't mess with them a bit. Call it payback for trying to steal my bounty."

He stood there staring at her in silence and she crossed her arms with a huff. "What?" she demanded, unable to deal with the quiet any longer.

"Nothing," he said finally, holding his hands up in a placating manner.

Narrowing her eyes slightly, she thought she caught the barest hint of a lip twitch, but it was gone far too fast for her to be certain. "All right then."

She'd managed to find a hair razor in the pigsty they called a bathroom, and she set about removing the blonde locks from the unconscious man's head. Halfway through her second cut she heard a soft snicker and she jerked her head in Riddick's direction. He raised an eyebrow at her in question and she figured that perhaps she'd imagined the sound after all.

Three passes later and she was sure he was laughing at her behind her back. Every time she started up the razor she'd hear him, but whenever she looked up he appeared to be doing nothing more than watching her absently. So the next time the sound reached her ears she dropped the razor and stood up with her hands on her hips. "What the hell is your problem?" she snapped.

Watching her hands clench into fists, he smirked. "No problem," he began. "I just find this childish side of you amusing, that's all."

"I'm _not_ childish!" she bit out, instantly regretting opening her mouth. When he laughed at her response she stuck her tongue out at him. She'd already proven his point; a little more immaturity wouldn't make any difference.

They stared at each other for a moment and then shared a smile.

Shaking her head, Lyra sank back down to her knees and grabbed the razor off the floor. She finished shaving Terry's head and was slipping the goggles over his eyes when a crazy thought struck her. "You know," she began, hesitating slightly before continuing. "I know a doc who can make you some special contacts if you're interested. Cover up that shine of yours and make you stand out a bit less."

Refusing to turn around to see his reaction, she started removing the man's clothes so she could redress him in the black tank top and pants she'd found. She was buttoning the pants when he finally spoke up.

"Why?"

He didn't elaborate, but she understood his question regardless. Shrugging, she glanced over her shoulder at him. "Why not? You may be a killer, but you're not a bad guy. I think a second chance would be good for you; give you the opportunity to become the person you were meant to be."

"You sure think awful highly of me," he said half joking.

"Not really, but saying I don't want anyone else to turn you in for a bounty I can't bring myself to take makes me sound a touch selfish," she said with a grin. "Now, stop standing around and help me put these guys in cryo. Can't have them waking up before I set this whole plan into motion."

With a shake of his head Riddick walked over to join her.

Since neither of them had much experience using cryo systems it took a lot longer than anticipated to get the four men strapped down and hooked up properly. Then Lyra struggled with setting the coordinates because the ship's computer was hopelessly outdated. By the time she'd gotten footage of her fake Riddick, which she had to admit looked nothing like the real deal, she was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to curl up in her bed and sleep.

"We all done here?" Riddick asked as they stepped off the ship.

"Just one more thing and . . ." she said, pressing the button to raise the ramp. "Yep, all set. I've programmed the ship to launch in two minutes so we should probably get going."

Nodding, he climbed on the bike and jerked his thumb at the space behind him. "This time I drive."

"I'm only letting you do this because I'm too tired to argue," she muttered, settling herself on the seat and wrapping her arms loosely around his waist.

Without another word, he started the engine and took off.

They made it to the top of the hill before the ship began to rise off the ground. Pulling the vehicle to a stop, the pair watched as the engines engaged and it shot off into space. When they could no longer see it, Riddick continued on and they were back outside her ship within minutes.

Giving him a gentle shove, Lyra drove the bike around so she could load it back onboard once he got off. After she made certain it was securely stowed away, she walked back around to the ramp and looked at her travel companion curiously. "So, what's it going to be?" she asked. "You want to stick around here, or tag along with me for a little while longer?"

Turning so he could look out across the horizon, Riddick took one last deep breath before stepping onto the ship. "Think I'll check out this doctor of yours. If your offer still stands that is."

Nodding her head, she smiled brightly. "Well then, welcome aboard."


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own Riddick or anything associated with said series.

* * *

Lyra basically ignored Riddick once she'd closed the ramp behind him, being far too busy running system checks and making sure her baby was all set for the next leg of its journey. By the time she leaned back in her chair, having finished inputting the coordinates for the planet Chariz, nearly an hour had passed in silence and she'd all but forgotten about her passenger.

A rustling of chains behind her had her spinning around, hand instinctively reaching for the blade at her back. Seeing the curious look on Riddick's face as he eyed the knife, she quickly put it away with a sheepish grin. "Sorry about that, old habits die hard."

Waving her apology aside, he'd been guilty of doing the same many times before, he kicked at the broken chain on the floor with the toe of his boot. "What happened here?" he asked. "One of those mercs figure out how to get out of this little setup of yours?"

"You're joking right?" she laughed. "If you couldn't get free what makes you think one of them would've been able to?"

When he pieced together what must've happened, he gave her a skeptical look. "You mean _you_ snapped this? You're a decent fighter I'll give you that, and pretty damn quick, but there's no way you'd have enough strength to pull something like this off. The links are half an inch thick."

Walking over she lifted the chain up so he could examine it closely, grinning when his eyes widened slightly. "It's a trick I picked up from Lenny, the Tanker's weapons specialist. He showed me how to fabricate a chain link that looks proper, but in reality is only about a quarter of the actual thickness. All I had to do was place that particular section of the chain next to the ring in the floor and then give it a hard yank."

"And your hands? Those chains are still intact so how'd you manage that?"

"I could tell you, but I'd rather watch you struggle to figure it out," Lyra said as she let the chain fall to the floor and headed back to her seat. Sending him a smirk over her shoulder, she sat down and kicked her feet up on the console.

Taking that as a challenge, Riddick looked over both sides of the chair for any signs of damage but came up empty. As far as he could tell every piece was in proper working order. He ruled out the next possibility just as quickly since her forearms were completely bare, meaning she hadn't used something she'd had on her person to aid in her escape. That left only one real option. "You hid something in the chair didn't you? Some kind of lock picking device."

Her eyes had slid closed at some point and she opened them to give him an appraising look. "Two minutes, not bad. But then I'd expect nothing less from someone who's spent most of his life busting out of some of the most secure places around."

Not sure whether it was a compliment or not, she'd sounded almost disappointed that it had taken him as long as it had, he tipped his head in her direction and sat down in the very spot he'd been tied to for the past few days when he realized there were no other seats in the cockpit.

He looked extremely uncomfortable, and after watching him shift around for a few minutes Lyra finally caved. "Why don't you use mine for awhile?" she offered, pushing herself to her feet. "I need to catch some sleep anyway so you may as well sit here until I return."

Watching her walk away, he glanced over at the chair and then back towards her but she'd already disappeared down the hall. After sliding into the seat a quick check told him that while he was no longer her prisoner he certainly wasn't her crew and she didn't trust him with her ship. The console was locked down and he counted at least three separate firewalls he'd have to bypass before he could get a look at anything other than their destination.

Leaning back like he'd seen her do several times before, he linked his hands together behind his head and stared out the front window of the ship while allowing his mind to wander. He thought about everything he'd been through recently, the deadly planet he'd left behind as well as the mercs who'd set him loose, and wondered if this doctor of hers would really be able to do what she said.

That thought had his mind shifting gears and he found himself thinking about the woman he was traveling with. One part of him said that she wasn't to be trusted, like all people she would turn on him eventually, another part, one that was steadily growing larger, actually believed she would stay true to her word.

It was a strange feeling, having faith in someone. Not something he was used to that was for sure. He'd been alone his whole life and had met very few people who were worthy of his time, and even less he could classify as a friend, and yet somehow Lyra had managed to weasel her way past his defenses. He had to admit he'd grown rather fond of her during their short time together.

She was smart, strong and, when she wasn't trying to kill him, pretty damn sexy. Okay, who was he kidding, she was even hotter when she had a weapon in her hand. Sure she acted like she could care less, but given time he was certain she'd come around. They always did.

He must've dozed off at some point because one minute he was imagining what she'd be like in bed and the next he was jolted awake by the sound of stuff being tossed around. Standing up, he followed the noise down the hall and came to a stop outside what he assumed was her bedroom since it was the only other door besides the bathroom on that side of the ship.

Raising his hand to knock, he paused when it was pulled open to show Lyra in a short sleeve, navy blue button up shirt and black pants, grinning triumphantly and holding a small package in her hand.

"Ah, just the convict I was looking for," she said, pushing the door open wider with her elbow and motioning him inside. "Take a seat on the bed please."

The room was sparsely furnished with cupboards lining the opposite wall, a small nightstand with a lamp and picture frame, and of course the very piece of furniture she wanted him on. Which, to his amusement, was covered in a pale blue comforter that had little yellow ducks splattered across it. Looking from the bed to her and back again, he gave her a sexy smirk. "I knew you wouldn't be able to keep your hands off me for long."

Rolling her eyes, she gave him a shove and said, "In your dreams mister, but seeing as you're here we may as well get this done now. There's better lighting in here anyway."

"Get what done exactly?" he asked as he sat down on the corner of her bed and looked up at her curiously.

"Why, your disguise of course."

When his look turned to one of confusion she slapped her forehead and groaned. "Right, sorry. Sometimes I get ahead of myself," she apologized. "I was thinking about how to avoid any misunderstandings once we land and decided a simple disguise should be sufficient to throw any mercs off your scent. I mean all they really have to go on is a picture and description, so if we alter your looks a bit they won't be any the wiser."

Hearing his snort she figured he was thinking about her last makeover job where the man ended up only slightly resembling the criminal he was supposed to be, so she quickly added, "It only has to work long enough to get those contacts made, after that your only distinguishing characteristic is gone and you'll be nothing more than a tall, bald, muscular man. The same as hundreds of other men out there."

"Man, you sure know how to hurt a guy's feelings," he said, his words coming across more bitter than he would've liked. "Telling me the only thing special about me is my eyes . . . now that's just cruel."

"You know what I meant," she replied, waving his response aside. "But hey, if you don't want my help that's fine, _you_ can figure out a way to keep yourself under the radar. Shouldn't be too hard, I mean we're only headed to one of the largest merc outposts around. It'll be a walk in the park."

The hint of sadness in her voice had him reaching out and grabbing her wrist as she turned to leave. "Go ahead and do whatever it was you were planning."

"You sure?" she asked hesitantly as she slowly spun around to face him. Seeing him nod, a small smile slid onto her face. "Well okay then."

For the next twenty minutes Lyra bent over Riddick's face with a tube filled with some kind of black paste and he was more than a little curious as to what she was doing. It felt odd, like someone was squeezing gruel onto his head, and he entertained the idea of asking her about it but she'd become so engrossed in her work that he couldn't bring himself to break her concentration.

Finally she stepped back and surveyed her work, nodding her head in satisfaction. "All finished," she said, sounding very pleased with herself. "It still needs to dry, but once it does you should be all set."

Watching her put her things away he asked, "So . . . care to explain what the hell you just did to me?"

"I gave you a tattoo," she replied, sounding as though drawing on his head was no big deal.

"You did _what_?"

Lyra turned to look at him "Relax, it's only henna." Seeing his confused look she explained, "It's temporary, should fade away in a few weeks. In the meantime though it'll look like you've had some serious work done on you."

Apparently he still didn't get what she was saying, his eyebrows remained furrowed, so she continued on. "You do know that tattoos take awhile to heal, right?" His look changed to one of annoyance at her tone and she raised her hands. "Of course you do," she said placatingly. "Anyway, what I was getting at is that the most recent broadcast of you was around two weeks ago. You were alone on an uninhabited planet, and according to the image didn't have a single marking on your head. There's no way you could've gotten this much work done in that short amount of time without some, if not all, of it still peeling. Ergo, you cannot possibly be Riddick."

Okay, so she made a good point. Raising his hand to touch the side of his face he dropped it back down at her glare. "No touching, got it."

Giving him a curt nod, she pointed to the door. "You can leave, we're done here."

"What about . . ." trailing off, he waved at his head.

"Like I said, it needs to dry. It should be ready in a few hours, until then don't pick at it." Then with a shooing motion she added, "Now kindly get the hell out of my room."

Pushing himself to his feet, he got to the door before turning around with a smirk. "You sure you don't want to try out that bed of yours first?" Dodging the small container she'd thrown at his head, he laughed as he walked back out to the cockpit.

He could hear her angry mutterings loud and clear despite the distance, and he shook his head as he sank back into her chair. She was an amusing character that was for sure.

ooooo

Whether it was because she was still pissed at him or she'd found something to occupy her time, Riddick didn't see Lyra again until she came strolling down the hall several hours later with a brown towel in her hand. Tossing it at him, she tipped her head in the direction she'd just come from. "It's dry, go wipe it off and let me know what you think."

Standing up, he quickly made his way to the bathroom anxious to see what she'd done. Since she hadn't given him any instructions along with the towel, he began to gently rub the hardened stuff off his head and neck as soon as he was in front of the mirror. It didn't take long for the image to become visible.

There were tribal flames running from the base of his neck up and around the back left side of his skull, with what appeared to be thick chains laced throughout them. Upon closer inspection he realized that the clear patches of skin she'd left were actually images themselves. He spotted a gun, several different types of blades, and even a small ship. All in all it was rather impressive work, and he couldn't help but wonder where she'd learned to draw like that.

Running his hand over the markings and watching as his reflection did the same thing, he came to the conclusion that he rather liked it. True it made him look kind of like a thug for hire, but the contrast of the black coloring on his darkened skin worked really well together and he decided that once things settled down he'd look into getting something more permanent.

Dropping the towel on the edge of the sink, he gave the mirror one last admiring look before heading out.

The moment he stepped foot in the cockpit Lyra spun to face him with a look of anticipation on her face. "So . . ." she began, practically bouncing with excitement. "What do you think? Do you like it? Not that I can do anything about it if you don't, but I really hope you do."

Smiling, her rambling was kind of cute, he tipped his head and said, "It's . . . amazing."

He was being serious for a change and a light blush dusted her cheeks at the sincerity of his statement. Suddenly feeling embarrassed, she cleared her throat and forced herself back into her merc mindset. "Well at least you don't hate it," she said in a business-like tone. Ignoring the pang in her chest when his eyes hardened in response, she told herself it was for the best.

It wasn't like he was going to stick around after he got what he wanted so there was no point in getting anymore attached then she already was. He'd already wormed his way into her heart and she wasn't sure she'd be able to handle him leaving if she allowed him to get any closer. So, from there on out, she was going to go back to the way things were before, when she was a merc and he was just a bounty.

Riddick wasn't sure what had changed, but one minute they were getting along great and the next she'd closed herself off completely. At first he'd thought she'd been angry with him about something, but as the hours passed and she continued to remain guarded he knew that that wasn't the case. She still allowed him his freedom, but she no longer engaged him in random conversations. She barely spoke to him at all now, and when she did it was only to tell him where something was or to ask him to move. He really didn't care for her sudden personality shift.

ooooo

On the fourth day after leaving Furya, Lyra landed her ship next to a very familiar vessel that was parked a few thousand feet away from a large collection of buildings. Shutting the engine down, she stood up and stretched the kinks out of her back before making her way to the ramp. By the time she'd hit the button to lower it Riddick was on his feet behind her, his eyes shifting around in search of any sign of danger.

She thought about telling him to relax, but truthfully it was better for him to be on guard. Chariz was a merc planet through and through, from the multiple slams scattered about to the hundreds of outposts just like the one they were at. It was no place for a convict that was for sure, not unless one had a death wish.

The moment the ramp touched the ground two redheaded men with freckles, both wearing the same dark blue shirts and black pants, came racing inside with huge grins on their faces. "Lyra!" they cried happily, pulling her into their arms and squeezing her tightly. "It's good to see you!"

"Sam, Ken," she said, her voice muffled from her position between them. "It's good to see you too, but it's getting hard to breath." They released her almost instantly but remained close by her side and she smiled up at the twins who'd apparently decided to let their hair grow out as it now brushed the bottom of their ears.

Sam eyed Lyra from head to toe and shook his head disapprovingly. "I swear your fashion sense gets worse every time we see you," he said, waving his hand at the dark green cargo pants and black tank top she was wearing. "What happened to all those pretty dresses we bought for you for your birthday?"

"And I thought you were going to grow your hair out so you could put it in a proper braid," Ken added as he gently tugged on her ponytail. Looking at his brother he sighed. "I think this one's a lost cause."

"It seems you are correct," Sam agreed sadly. "Such a shame really, she cleans up so nicely."

Rolling her eyes at their behavior, Lyra smacked Ken's arm when he began to sniffle. "Knock it off you two or I'll tell Markum about the time you stole hi-." The rest of her sentence was cut off when Sam slapped his hand over her mouth.

"You swore you'd never speak of that!"

"You did, I heard you too!"

Peeling Sam's hand away Lyra shrugged. "That may be, but I'm feeling rather _talkative_ right now. Who knows what will come out of my mouth."

The two men shared a look before replying in unison. "We promise to leave your _style_ alone . . . for now anyway."

The last part was muttered quietly and, just like she always did whenever they played this little game of theirs, Lyra pretended she hadn't heard it. "Deal. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to go say hello to everyone else."

Pulling her into another group hug, Ken and Sam both gave her a peck on the cheek and then shoved her down the ramp. As soon as she stepped outside they turned their attention to the man who'd been partially hiding in the shadows.

"And who might you be?" Ken asked, the playfulness in his voice replaced with something much more sinister. "A stowaway perhaps?"

"No, she'd have ditched him if that were the case," Sam answered as the two spread out enough to prevent the other man from escaping. "It's obvious our girl allowed him onboard, why else would he be wearing some of the Captain's hand-me-downs, so I think we should do the polite thing and _introduce_ ourselves."

Riddick knew the look on their faces well, it meant that someone was about to get hurt, but regardless of how much Lyra liked these guys he had no intention of taking a beating from a couple of mouthy punks. Allowing his arms to hang loosely by his side, he watched the two men closely as they stalked towards him.

Suddenly Lyra came waltzing back onboard and they separated immediately. Sensing the tension in the air, she raised an eyebrow curiously. "You weren't about to bother my friend here were you?" she asked, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Because I would be _very_ upset if that were the case."

"Of course not sis, we were just . . . welcoming him to the family. Right?" Sam replied quickly, giving Ken a pointed look.

"Yep," Ken agreed. "We were just about to offer this fine fellow a tour of our beloved ship. Show him around, introduce him to everyone, that kind of thing."

Lyra snorted. "I'm sure that's exactly what you were planning, and while I'm certain he'd _love_ to spend more time with you guys, he's actually here to see the doc so you'll have to find someone else to bother," she said as she took Riddick by the hand and pulled him along behind her down the ramp.

When their grumbles faded away, she released Riddick and turned to face him with a frown marring her face. "Okay, we need to go over some ground rules here. First, absolutely no fighting outside the sparring room," she told him sternly. "Now I know those two morons were egging you on, but if Markum finds out there'll be hell to pay. Second, don't go wandering around by yourself. The crew doesn't take kindly to trespassers and they tend to shoot first and ask questions later. And finally, while we're here I'm going to refer to you as Richard. It would be better to name you something different altogether, but as they say, the simplest lie is one based off the truth. Just don't offer your last name and you should be fine."

"That it?"

"For now," she replied. Eyeing his clothes, the dark blue cargo pants and a black t-shirt looking a lot worse for the wear, she wrinkled her nose. "I know I said I'd take you to see the doc, but I think a pit stop is in order first. We'll get you something clean to wear from the laundry room so she doesn't have a meltdown when you walk in."

Shrugging, Riddick followed after her as she made her way to a small side ramp that led into the large ship a couple hundred feet away. He didn't have much time to examine the exterior but was very impressed by what he'd managed to see. It reminded him of a bigger version of Lyra's ship, strong and sturdy, and covered in all sorts of weapons, and he couldn't wait to see what they had inside.

A short time later they found themselves stepping off the ramp and into a room filled with several small hover-bikes, half a dozen weapon lockers, and a stack of crates that were in various stages of being unloaded. There were four hallways, two on either side of the cargo hold, and a large door that read 'Cockpit' near the front of the room. Not giving him time to look around, she took him down the second hall on the right, passing four pairs of doors and stopping outside the one at the end of the hallway.

Ducking inside, she was back out in less than a minute carrying an outfit. Tossing it at him, she stepped to the side and motioned him inside the room behind her. "Go ahead and get changed in there and toss what you're wearing in the trash when you're finished."

"Yes maam," Riddick said, giving her a mock salute. She didn't laugh, but he caught a glimpse of her smile and grinned as she slammed the door on his face. He still had no idea why she'd gone cold on him, but it was becoming clear that she was struggling to remain distant. Given time he was certain she'd be back to normal.

Turning around he nearly ran right into a washing machine. Apparently when she'd said laundry room what she'd really meant was closet. There was barely enough room for him in there with the washer, dryer, and stack of haphazardly folded clothes. Being careful not to make a mess, he stripped himself of what he'd been wearing and pulled on a clean pair of black pants and a snug fitting navy blue tank top. Throwing the old outfit in the trash bin against the wall, he opened the door and joined Lyra back in the hall.

"Sorry they're so tight, but Markum only does his laundry once a week so I had to make do with some of Cane's clothes," she told him as she started walking back the way they'd came. "I'll see about getting you something better before you . . . leave."

Riddick's head jerked in her direction when he heard her voice hitch and he paused mid-step, his mind working a mile a minute as he replayed the last few days over in his head. With a groan, he nearly slapped himself in the forehead when it finally dawned on him. She was trying to distance herself because she'd grown too attached to him, she didn't want to get hurt. _That's_ why she hadn't been herself lately.

Staring at the back of her head, a small smile made its way onto his face. He'd been hesitant to broach the subject of possibly going with her when she went back into space because of her sudden change in attitude, but now that he knew the reason he was fairly certain she'd be thrilled with the idea. He just had to break through the walls she'd put up first.

He quickened his pace to catch up when she went through the cargo hold and down the hall on her left. There were only two doors, one which was labeled 'Supplies' and another that was situated next to a glass window through which an exam table and medical equipment could be seen.

Lyra shoved the door open and called out, "Doc, you in here?"

Following her in, Riddick took in the stark white room and repressed a shudder. He didn't care much for hospitals of any kind and this place was no exception.

Before he could get too uncomfortable a busty blonde woman in her late forties came strolling in dressed in a bright red dress that was partially covered by the white lab coat she had on over it. "Lyra, is that you darling?" the woman said, her voice thick with a foreign accent. "What took you so long child? Markum's been pacing for days."

She'd been in the process of pulling Lyra in for a hug when she caught sight of the man standing next to her. Looking back and forth between the pair, she raised an eyebrow in question. "Does he know you've brought a tasty little morsel with you? And if not, can I be there when you tell him? I do so love watching him freak out."

"It's not like that," Lyra said with a shake of her head. "I brought him here to see you."

"Really now, is that so?" she asked, raking her eyes over his form slowly. "And what's your name cutie?"

Lyra rolled her eyes. "His name is Richard, and you know that's not what I meant." Shaking her head when the older woman gave her an innocent look, she pointed at the ceiling. "Turn down the lights; I've got something to show you."

More than a little curious, the blonde doctor hit the switch and watched as Lyra slowly peeled the goggles off the bald man's head. When his eyes slid open she whistled. "That body of yours is nice and all, but those eyes . . . they are something else." Stepping forward, she stood up on her toes so she could get a better look. "Impressive work, I've never seen anything like it before."

Taking the goggles from Lyra's hands, she held them out to Riddick and waited for him to put them back on before turning the lights back on. "So what do you want exactly?" she asked. "If you're hoping to have them turned back to normal that's way out of my league."

"No!" Lyra cried out before he had a chance to respond. Ignoring the look he sent her way she cleared her throat and added, "I mean, that's not why he's here. I told him you'd be able to make some protective contacts that would hide the shine and allow him to see without those things covering up his eyes."

"I see," the woman said, a knowing smile forming on her face at the outburst. "Well I can definitely whip up something for him, and since I'm feeling in a particularly generous mood at the moment it'll only cost you . . . a kiss."

When Riddick growled lowly and moved to take a step towards her she shook her head and laughed. "I didn't mean from you honey. I was talking to the brat over there that hasn't given me a proper hello yet." Holding out her arms, she looked at Lyra expectantly.

Smiling, Lyra stepped into the hug and kissed the older woman on the cheek. "It's good to see you again Hilde."

"Good to see you too darling." Releasing her, Hilde made a shooing motion with her hand. "Alright you two, I've got work to do so get lost."

"We're going, we're going," Lyra laughed as she shoved Riddick out the door and followed after him.

"They should be ready in about an hour," Hilde's voice called out behind them. "Try not to let the rest of the crew find him before then!"

Riddick froze, his body going instantly on alert, and Lyra shook her head. "She didn't mean it like that; they won't hurt you unless you do something stupid. Okay, that's not entirely true. There's a good possibility they may try to . . ."

The rest of what she said was so quiet he couldn't make out a word of it. "What was that?" he asked, raising an eyebrow when she began to glance around nervously. "Well, spit it out."

Taking a deep breath, she released it slowly before mumbling, ". . . remove your family jewels."

She refused to meet his eyes so he reached out and grabbed her chin to force her to look at him. "Explain," he ordered.

"Well, you see, they've kind of gotten it into their heads that they need to _interrogate_ every guy I hook up with," she said finally. "And since I rarely travel with anyone other than the bounties I pick up, they're going to assume that we're together. I'll try to convince them otherwise, but I'm sure Sam and Ken have already spread the word around so there's little hope of them listening to me."

Riddick had never had the _pleasure_ of dealing with an overprotective relative before, but he'd seen firsthand the damage they could cause when properly motivated. It was just his luck that his first time was going to be on a ship filled with god knows how many of them.

Seeing him pale slightly, Lyra gave him grin. "Look on the bright side, at least you won't have to worry about them hunting you down for your bounty."

"_That_ I can handle," he muttered under his breath.

Patting his cheek, she pushed him forward so he'd start moving again. "Remember, you're the one who wanted to come along. Maybe next time you'll do your research before jumping into things."

Laughing at his annoyed growl she ushered him back down the hall and a small smile made its way onto his face. He wasn't really looking forward to meeting the rest of the crew, but if that was what it took to get the old Lyra back it was a sacrifice he was willing to make. Just so long as they didn't _actually_ try to turn him into a woman.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own Riddick or anything associated with said series.

* * *

Originally the plan had been to bring Riddick onboard the Tanker discreetly. Lyra had worked it all out on their journey to meet up with the crew of said ship; first she'd take him to see Hilde and have him get the special contacts made while she went to say hello to everyone, and _then_ she'd take him to see Markum and the gang. It was the best way to keep his identity a secret.

Of course that idea had been shot to hell when the twins had come barging onto her ship the moment she'd touched down. She knew they were just happy to see her, but now she was forced to introduce the convict to a group of highly trained mercs while he still wore his signature goggles. She only hoped that the crew's attention would be so focused on him being her latest love interest that they didn't figure out who he really was.

As they made their way back into the cargo hold she suddenly realized that in order to sell the lie she was going to actually have to pretend that she _liked_ Riddick. Sure they'd gotten along together fine on the ship, had even become something akin to friends, but being friendly wasn't good enough. She was going to have to get _cozy_ with him if this was to work.

Muttering under her breath about stupid brothers, she reached over and snatched Riddick's hand with her own. Choosing to ignore the smirk he sent her way lest she be tempted to wipe it off with her fist, she settled for squeezing his fingers tight enough that her nails were pressed deeply into his skin.

"Like it rough do ya?" he purred, grinning when her steps faltered and her shoulders began to shake in suppressed anger. "That's good, cause so do I."

Not able to hold it in any longer, Lyra spun around with the intention of beating the infuriating man to a bloody pulp. A deep chuckle from behind stopped her in her tracks. Forgetting all about the one she'd been ready to attack, she turned around and ran into the arms of the large, grey haired man that was standing just in front of the cockpit door.

Dressed in brown pants and a dark green, long sleeved shirt, with his hair pulled into a ponytail at the base of his neck, Markum wrapped his arms around Lyra and kissed the top of her head affectionately. "Hey there kiddo, it's good to have you back," he said as he crushed her against him.

Returning the hug just as enthusiastically, Lyra tipped back her head so she could look the older man in the eyes. "Good to be back." When he brought his forehead down to rest against her own she smiled before taking a few steps back. "How you been old man?" she asked as she eyed him up and down. "Decided to retire yet and live a life of leisure on some exotic planet?"

"I'll give up my ship when you come back and take over."

Rolling her eyes, she shook her head. They'd been having the same discussion for the last five years, but both of them were too stubborn to cave. Markum refused to turn the ship over to anyone but her, and she wanted nothing more than to live freely on her own without a crew to tie her down. "You know I have no desire to do that, besides, Yuri's a much better choice than I am."

Markum rubbed his chin in thought before saying, "You make a very good point, but I don't see you taking orders from him so that's not going to work."

"For the last time Markum, I'm not coming back to the Tanker," Lyra said in exasperation. "I have my own ship and I don't plan on giving her up anytime soon."

"I know you like your freedom, but I worry about you being on your own out there," pausing, he glanced over at the tattooed bald man who hadn't moved during their conversation. "Or perhaps the real reason you don't want to come back is because of him. You afraid he'll end up like Reese?"

"Hey, it wasn't his fault he had a breakdown," Lyra snapped. "You guys are the ones that wouldn't leave the poor man alone. And he was such a sweetheart too." She'd had exactly three boyfriends so far in her life, and none of them had lasted longer than a few months thanks to her old crew. The first two, Billy and Derek, had both gotten off relatively easy. They'd only been tormented from afar. Reese had come with her on one of her trips to meet up with the Tanker; last she'd heard he was locked away in a padded cell somewhere.

Markum gave her a half shrug. "What can I say, the man was pathetic." Patting her head when she growled at him he took several steps forward, stopping when he was just outside the other man's reach. "What about you?" he began. "Do _you_ think I should allow mediocre men to date my precious niece?"

"I think that you should trust your _niece's_ instincts," Riddick replied evenly. "They're far superior to yours after all."

There was silence for some time and then Markum laughed. "You've got guts kid," he said with a shake of his head.

"The name's Richard, and I ain't no kid."

"Richard, eh? I thought so," Markum muttered, turning to give Lyra a serious look. "Care to explain what the hell's going on here?" He might be old, but his mind was still as sharp as ever and he knew _exactly_ who the man standing next to him was.

Deciding to play dumb, Lyra cocked her head to the side in confusion. "What do you mean? Is there something wrong with me bringing my boyfriend with me now?"

"Lyriana . . ."

"Fine," Lyra grumbled, throwing her hands up in defeat. "What do you want to know?"

Markum jerked his thumb at Riddick. "How about you start with why the bounty you were supposed to have tossed in a slam somewhere is on my bloody ship!"

"Um . . . well, you see . . ." Fumbling for words Lyra glanced at Riddick helplessly, but he merely raised an eyebrow as if to say 'it's your problem, you deal with it'. Chewing on her lip, she took a deep breath before finally admitting, "I brought him here to see Hilde."

A quick glance at Riddick told him what she wanted the doc for and he narrowed his eyes. "Why in the hell are you helping a convict disappear? You're a merc for crying out loud!"

Lyra shrugged. "I am, yes, but I'm Furyan first and foremost."

It took Markum a few seconds to figure out what she meant by that and when he did his reaction was pretty much identical to hers when she'd first learned what Riddick was. "He's a damn Furyan?!" he nearly cried out in shock. "But that's not . . ." trailing off, he had to admit it made sense. Having helped raise a Furyan from a very young age he was well aware of just how skilled their race truly was.

Looking from Lyra to Riddick and then back again, he ran a hand over his face with a groan. "Well, at least this time you've managed to find someone worthy of you," he said finally, grinning when Lyra started to sputter. "He might even be able to survive meeting Cane."

"It's not like that!"

Ignoring her outburst, Markum held out his hand. "It's nice to meet you Richard," he said, winking conspiratorially. "Please take good care of my baby girl."

Smirking, Riddick could swear he saw steam coming out of Lyra's ears with that last comment, he shook the offered hand. "I'll do my best sir."

Glaring at the two men, Lyra grit her teeth. Yes she was glad that Markum was taking things so well, it definitely beat the alternative, but did he really have to go _that_ far? If he kept this up she had no doubt the crew would be planning Riddick's funeral within the hour.

If he hadn't seen their earlier interactions Markum would've been far more leery of Riddick, what with his track record and all, but when he'd stepped out of the cockpit to see their playful bantering he knew the man couldn't be all that bad. Besides, like Riddick had said, Lyra's instincts were a lot better than his and if she was willing to trust the man then so was he.

Chuckling at the look on Lyra's face, she was barely holding her anger in check, he headed back behind the hover-bikes while calling out, "I know you're upset and all, but I've got just the thing to cheer you up."

Torn between wanting to ignore him and curiosity at what he'd found this time, Lyra couldn't resist trailing after him. She found him hunched over a large crate with air holes cut throughout it and quickly joined him. "What is it?" she asked as she tried to peer inside, frowning when the darkness made it impossible to make out anything more than a fairly good sized mound.

"Not entirely sure to be honest," Markum replied with a shrug. "One of our recent bounties had this little one locked in his bedroom and I thought you might like her, what with your love for all things beautiful and dangerous." His eyes flitted to Riddick briefly before settling back on her and he was pleased to see a nice shade of red color her cheeks.

Clearing her throat, Lyra motioned to the crate. "May I?"

"Be my guest. I'd be careful though," Markum warned as he stepped back. "She's not exactly the friendliest of creatures. Took almost half of us to wrangle her into that box."

Reaching out to undo the latch that was holding one of the sides closed, Lyra dropped to her knees and slowly pulled the makeshift door open so she could look inside. What she saw took her breath away.

Curled against the far back wall was a cat unlike any she'd ever seen before. It was fairly small, about the size of an average dog, with blood red fur that faded to black at her ears, paws and tail. Her ears were shaped like horns, curling up towards each other and ending in a sharp point, and her tail was twisted around the chain hanging from her neck in such a way that showed she could completely control its movement.

Huge black eyes, with slitted pupils that appeared silver, stared out at her and she held her hand out while cooing, "Come here girl, I won't hurt you." There was a hiss and a small paw slashed out at her leaving a nice gash in her hand from a razor sharp claw, but Lyra kept her arm still. "It's okay sweetie," she continued in a gentle tone.

One minute passed, then two, until finally the animal unfurled herself and took a hesitant step forward. "That's it," Lyra said, smiling when its black nose sniffed her curiously. A long pink tongue snaked out to lick at the wound on her hand and she brushed her fingers against the silky fur.

Mewling softly, the creature left the confines of her cage and gently placed her head in Lyra's lap, curling into a ball against her side with a contented purr.

Petting her ears, Lyra leaned over and touched their noses together. "That's a good girl," she said, releasing the collar around her neck before turning to look at Markum. "Does she have a name?"

"The man that had her kept referring to her as Snookums, if that helps."

Snorting, Lyra scratched the cat under the chin when she rubbed her head against her hand. "That's a terrible name, isn't it girl." Cocking her head to the side, she thought for a moment before saying, "I'll call you Shade. What do you think, do you like that girl?" A purr was her answer and she nuzzled the cat's face affectionately.

"You'd better be careful boy," Markum told Riddick as he watched Lyra cuddle with her new pet. "There ain't a beast alive that she can't tame. Stick with her and she'll have you whipped in no time."

"It's a Furyan thing, that's all," Riddick said as he moved towards the pair on the floor. To prove his point he crouched down so he was eye level with the creature, Shade he reminded himself, when he was within arms reach of it and held out his hand, beckoning the cat forward.

Lyra removed her hand from Shade's back when her lips curled up to show an impressive set of teeth and a growl rose in her throat. Opening her mouth to warn the man, she never got the chance. Shade arched her back and leaped at Riddick with her claws extended so fast that Lyra barely even saw her move.

Scrambling backwards, Riddick glared at the cat standing protectively in front of Lyra. "The hell?!" he growled, wincing as he took in the long, thin gashes she'd made down his left arm.

Markum laughed at the look of utter shock on Riddick's face. "You were saying?" he chuckled.

Sending the older man a glare, Riddick turned back to glower at Shade who looked entirely too innocent where she sat purring against Lyra's side. He was tempted to try again so he could prove to the laughing man that he was right, but he didn't think his pride could take another hit if the little beast decided to snap at him again.

In an attempt to save face he stood up and dabbed at the bloody marks with the bottom of his tank top while saying, "It was my fault for not waiting until Lyra acknowledged me; any animal would attack to protect their chosen master."

"Yeah, I'm sure _that's_ the reason she clawed you," Markum said with snort before shifting his attention back to Lyra when she got to her feet. "That little pet of yours going to be a problem?" he asked seriously.

Shade had taken up position on Lyra's left side, black tail sliding upwards and wrapping loosely around her waist, and Lyra shook her head. "I promise she'll be on her best behavior."

If it had been anyone else Markum would've demanded they lock the creature back up for the crew's protection, but he'd meant what he'd said about Lyra's ability to tame all kinds of animals and if she said the cat would behave that was good enough for him. "Well alright then." Holding out his arm he waited for Lyra to walk over and take it, making sure to keep himself as far away from her snarling bodyguard as possible while leading her towards the hall next to the one they'd come out of earlier.

Riddick followed after them at a slightly slower pace . . . to give the two some privacy in case they wanted to discuss anything. His decision to lag behind was most definitely _not_ because of the black eyed devil who continued to bare her teeth at him every few seconds.

"So," Markum began as they stepped into the hallway. "I saw an interesting broadcast a few days ago. Seems Fox snagged himself a big payday and then went and bragged about it to the whole 'verse. Got himself into a hell of a lot of trouble. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

"That's news to me," Lyra replied, her lips twitching as she tried to keep her face neutral.

With a shake of his head Markum came to a stop outside the second door on the right. "Is that so? You sure there's nothing you want to tell me? Not even about a certain merc and his inappropriate handling of you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she lied. How he managed to get his information so quickly was still a mystery to her, the man could find out anything about anyone within hours of it happening if he wanted, and Lyra knew he was just waiting for the go ahead to hunt them down, but she'd seen the sorry state they'd been in once the other mercs were through with them and figured that was punishment enough for what they'd done.

Releasing a sigh, Markum reached out and grabbed the door's handle. "Alright, I'll let it slide this time, but if they ever come near you again I'm going to have a few _words_ with them," he muttered as he pushed the door open and ushered her inside.

The moment she stepped through the door and into the large room that had mats covering half the floor and a collection of weapons lining the back wall, the two men who'd been grappling froze. "Cane, Yuri," she beamed. "How you guys been?"

Yuri wiped his brow and gave her a small smile. Dressed in baggy blue pants and a grey t-shirt, the forty-something year old was tall and thin, with jet black hair that reached his chin, and was by far the smartest person on the Tanker. Tipping his head in her direction he said, "Hello Lyra, long time no see."

The man he'd been sparring with, who was wearing red pants and a white tank top, and had a mess of blonde hair atop his head, wasn't nearly so reserved. Rushing towards her Cane pulled the younger woman into his arms. "Lyra!" he cried happily, backing away moments later when he noticed the not so friendly creature at her side that was growling at him. "Relax there spawn of Satan," he said, raising his hands to show he wasn't a threat. "I ain't gonna hurt her."

Lyra's eyes narrowed. "Her name is Shade."

"_It_ is evil," Cane grumbled as he pointed to several faint white scars a few inches above his right wrist. "Just look at what it did to me!"

Rolling her eyes, Lyra placed her hand on Shade's head to calm her down. "You've been shot, stabbed, and blown up more times than I can count," she said as she waved at the faded scars that littered his skin. "Quit whining about a few tiny scratches."

Cane crossed his arms and stuck out his lower lip, causing Yuri to shake his head and leave the room while the blonde pouted. "Meanie."

Riddick wasn't sure what to make of the man. From his behavior he acted more like an overgrown child, but Markum had sounded as though fighting the man would be tantamount to suicide. Cane was nearly a head smaller than him and looked almost gangly compared to him, yet Lyra talked as though he was their muscle. Either they were screwing with him, or the guy was a hell of a lot stronger than he looked.

Suddenly Cane's whole demeanor changed and he turned to face Riddick with a predatory grin on his face. "I've ignored you long enough," he said as he cracked his knuckles and loosened up his body. "What say we skip the introductions and I go straight to kicking your ass?"

Before he had time to respond Riddick found himself dodging a flurry of punches that were so fast he was having trouble tracking them. Narrowly avoiding what would've been a nasty uppercut, he jumped back a few feet before sprinting forwards with an attack of his own.

Cane laughed as he pushed the fist aside with ease. "Not very quick there are you Goggles? But then I'm sure it must be difficult fighting in clothes that don't belong to you," he sneered, kicking Riddick in the shin as he spun around behind him.

It wasn't the first time he'd been up against an opponent faster than him, but Riddick was quickly finding out the hard way that Cane had a whole lot of power inside his small frame. Each attack was like a damn boulder being thrown at him, and even with his high pain tolerance he knew it would hurt like hell if any of them connected.

"Cane playing king of the mountain again?" a new voice asked, and Riddick found an opening when Cane's eyes narrowed and he glanced over to see who'd just walked in.

Grabbing his arm, Riddick twisted it around and pulled Cane into a headlock. Digging his fingers into Riddick's arm, Cane somehow managed to slip one hand between his neck and the arm pressed against it which was all the leverage he needed. Locking his arms around Riddick's wrist, he crushed them together with enough force to cut off the blood flowing to it.

Not taking her eyes off the pair in the center of the room, Lyra gave the white haired man dressed in blue, grease splattered coveralls a small wave. "Hey Lenny, glad to see you decided to leave your box."

"You know I never miss a chance to see my favorite tinkerer," he replied, his grin revealing several missing teeth.

Since he was losing feeling in his hand, Riddick released Cane's neck and took hold of his upper arm instead. Bending backwards a touch, he pivoted on his right foot and used his momentum to throw Cane against the opposite wall. Instead of hitting it like he'd hoped, the other man rolled around and did a back flip to land in a crouch on the floor.

"Got anything new to show me while I'm here?" Lyra asked as she watched Cane dive at Riddick, nearly knocking the other man to the ground with the force of his attack.

Lenny's eyes lit up like they always did when he was talking about his inventions. "Been working on a few projects. I've got a new explosive that's ten times lighter and a hundred times more powerful than C-4; you can take out a whole ship with only a few ounces. Then there are my latest drones of course. I equipped them with more firepower and better cameras, and improved their flight capabilities so you can now send them out as soon as you're below two thousand feet. Oh, and I finally finished perfecting the concussion grenade I'd had kicking around."

While he was rambling on Riddick and Cane had gone from hand to hand to sword fighting, both having grabbed long, thin blades from the wall, and Lyra was starting to wonder if perhaps it was time to step in before someone really got hurt. They were both bleeding in multiple spots, but neither of them seemed to notice the wounds as they were far too focused on each other.

Markum must've been thinking the same thing because not a minute later he let out a shrill whistle and called out, "Alright you two, that's enough."

Unsurprisingly they both ignored the order, continuing their deadly dance as though they were the only two people in the room.

Grumbling under his breath about insolent little brats, Markum was moving to intervene when the redheaded twins burst through the door.

Sam took in the scene before him and narrowed his eyes while shouting, "What the hell Cane! How come you haven't whooped his ass already?"

"Yeah, stop playing around man!" Ken added.

Ducking underneath the sword that had come slashing down at his head, Cane growled. "Would you two shut up, I'm kinda busy here!"

"I've seen you take on bigger guys before so what's the problem?" Ken asked as Riddick twisted around to avoid Cane's swing. "You said you'd take care of him!"

Sam nodded."Said he was as good as dead if I remember correctly."

"I believe he also mentioned removing his . . ." he paused, looking over at Lyra before motioning between his legs. ". . . you know . . . and shoving it down his throat."

"No, I'm pretty sure that was you."

"It was Cane," Ken argued. "I suggested setting him on fire, remember."

"Oh, that's right. Well it doesn't really matter so long as the man suffers, so feel free to do whatever you like," Sam told Cane. "Just make sure whatever it is is very painful . . . and deadly. Don't forget to kill him when you're finished."

"He's not allowed to kill him," Ken said with a shake of his head. "Markum has strict rules about murdering Lyra's boyfriends; we're only supposed to do minor bodily harm and mentally scar them."

"Don't listen to him Cane, you just go right ahead and gut the bastard."

"That's a little harsh don't you think? I mean he's only dating her, it's not like they're married or anything." Ken turned narrowed eyes on Lyra. "You're not _are_ you?"

"What, of course not!" Lyra said flabbergasted.

"Not yet anyway," Markum chimed in, grinning when she sent a glare his way. "But I hear they have plans to do so in the near future."

"That's so not helping," Lyra snapped at the same time the twins erupted in anger.

"What?!" they cried in outrage.

Rubbing a hand over her face, Lyra placed the other on top of Shade's head when the cat butted up against her leg at the outburst and began to growl. "It's okay girl," she said, smiling down at the animal reassuringly. "They're not going to hurt me, but if they don't stop being idiots I might just allow you to have some fun with them."

Cane had managed to block out most of their bickering but at the mention of marriage his eyes narrowed and he flew at Riddick with a speed the convict hadn't expected. "I want the truth, now," he ground out, muscles tensed in an effort to keep from beheading the other man.

Staring at the blade pressed against his throat, Riddick raised an eyebrow as he let his arm drop slowly to his side. "About?" he asked curiously, knowing full well what Cane wanted but refusing to make things easy for him.

"Is what Markum said true?"

Riddick was tempted to say yes, if only to see his reaction, but it was obvious Cane was trying very hard _not_ to kill him so he decided not to push him. The man was an excellent fighter without the added anger, no need to make him even more dangerous. "We're friends, that's all," he admitted, though to be honest he wasn't exactly sure what they were anymore.

The seconds ticked by, Cane's gaze never leaving the tinted goggles that covered the taller man's eyes, until finally he removed the blade from his neck and backed away. Smiling, he tossed the weapon on the ground and held out his hand. "The name's Cane," he greeted cheerfully.

"Richard," Riddick said slowly, a bit thrown by the sudden change in attitude. Letting his sword fall to the ground as well, he shook the offered hand.

"Well, friends or not, at least she's finally managed to pick someone who's not a complete loser." With that said Cane turned around to join in the other conversation going on in the room, leaving Riddick standing all alone and more than a little confused.

With a shake of his head, everyone onboard the Tanker was clearly insane, Riddick followed after him in time to see the two men who'd come barreling onto Lyra's ship when they'd first landed hide behind Markum and demand the man do something about the evil creature that was hissing at them.

"Hey, you two are the ones who pissed her off," Markum said, shoving them aside. "Apologize and maybe she'll let you live."

"I'd be more worried about yourself old man," Lyra said through gritted teeth.

Chuckling nervously, Markum rubbed the back of his neck while saying, "Come on now, can't you take a joke?"

". . . wait, you mean she's _not_ getting married?" Sam asked, his anger disappearing almost immediately. Seeing Markum shake his head, he breathed a sigh of relief before his eyes widened and he jerked around. "Cane, don't kill . . .," he trailed off when he spotted the two standing nearby. "Oh, never mind."

"I'd like to apologize for my brother," Ken said as he walked over and offered Riddick his hand. "As you can tell we're all a bit overprotective of our little sister here, but sometimes he takes things a little too far."

"It's not the first time someone's tried to have me killed," Riddick replied with a shrug as he took his hand.

"I was referring to the name calling," Ken said, his voice dropping so no one else could hear what he said next. "Make no mistake, if you so much as _think_ about doing anything inappropriate with her we _will_ hunt you down and take turns cutting off parts of your body." Spinning around he called out. "I'm hungry, anyone else want to join me for some lunch?"

"I could go for a sandwich right now," Cane said with a nod.

"You know me, I'm always up for food," Sam agreed.

"I should probably eat something today," Lenny muttered as he joined the others leaving the room.

Markum was the last to leave and he jerked his thumb at a small white box hanging on the wall next to him. "Get yourself patched up, I don't want bloodstains on my ship," he said before walking out of the room.

". . . that went better than expected," Lyra said once everyone was gone.

Riddick shot her a look that said she was clearly out of her mind. "I nearly got the shit kicked out of me by a man half my size while those twin psychos cheered him on," he complained, grabbing the first aid kit and pulling out some bandages. "How the hell is that good?"

"You're still alive aren't you?"

Opening his mouth, Riddick closed it with growl. He couldn't argue with that. As he wrapped up his wounds he couldn't help but ask, "Do they do this to every guy you bring back?"

"You're only the second one they've ever met," she admitted after a moment of silence. "The first two guys I dated got scared off by mere threats, bolted before I had a chance to introduce them, Reese on the other hand was certain he could handle them so I brought him along with me once. Saying it ended badly would be an understatement. Since then I've basically sworn off men, which is why I thought they'd go a lot harder on you seeing as they haven't had this kind of opportunity for awhile. Of course I did threaten to never come visit if they did anything like that again, so perhaps that's why they were behaving."

Riddick had a feeling that wasn't that case. When Cane had questioned him earlier he'd gotten the distinct impression that the man was sizing him up and had come to the same conclusion Markum had, that he wasn't a threat . . . to her anyway. It was obvious they had no intention of allowing him to have any sort of _actual_ relationship with Lyra, not that that would stop him from pursuing one if given the opportunity, but he'd proven himself worthy of being near her at least.

Tying off the last of his bandages he was about to put the box away when Shade came creeping towards him, her nose sniffing the air curiously. Keeping perfectly still he let her smell his arm where he'd been cut the deepest and watched as her head cocked to the side and her large eyes blinked up at him. Giving the covered wound a gentle lick, she mewled softly before spinning around and returning to her place at Lyra's side.

"I guess there's Furyan in you after all," Lyra said with a quirk of her lips. Laughing as she dodged the bandage he'd thrown at her, she headed towards the door. "So . . ." she began. "Want to join us for lunch?"

Putting the box away he tipped his head slightly. "Sure, why not." He'd already passed their tests so he may as well take advantage of their hospitality. Besides, a ship this large had to have at least some decent food. He was getting real tired of the packaged crap Lyra had been forcing down his throat.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own Riddick or anything associated with said series.

* * *

About five minutes into their _meal_ Riddick came to the conclusion that his earlier assessment was wrong. The crew of the Tanker wasn't just crazy, they were certifiable . . . and their food was just as bad as the garbage Lyra had given him. Apparently none of them had anything even remotely resembling taste buds.

As soon as they'd walked into the mess hall the twins had dragged him off to their end of the table and spent the entire meal telling him one story after another, all of which revolved around them, and most of which he was certain were complete bull.

While they were bombarding him with their tall tales Riddick was also forced to keep up conversations with the others whenever they chose to talk to him, which was far more often then he would've liked. Cane wanted to know where he'd learned to fight, Lenny was convinced that he needed his help for an experiment, and Yuri . . . well, he'd given him a knowing look, mouthed 'Riddick,' and then tipped his head before resuming his discussion with Markum.

On top of that Shade had gone back to snarling at him every few seconds. Now whether that was because Lyra had told her to stay by the door and he was the closest person to her or the cat was mad at him for some reason he had no clue, but either way, when combined with the overzealousness of the other men in the room it made for a rather uncomfortable gathering.

So when the door was thrown open sometime later and the blonde doctor came strolling in he was more than a little grateful for the distraction. Of course the minute she opened her mouth that all changed.

"It took me longer than anticipated, but I managed to finish your contacts there Sugar," Hilde said, smiling as she held out a small box. "Why don't you try them out and tell me what you think."

Suddenly everyone's attention was focused on him, and not in the 'we're curious about you because you're traveling with our sister' kind of way. Acting as though he didn't notice their eyes following his every move, Riddick stood up and grabbed the small container while muttering "Thanks," under his breath.

When he didn't move to put them in Hilde placed her hands on her hips and began to tap her foot in impatience. "I don't got all day here buddy."

Lyra turned wide eyes to him but shrugged helplessly. There wasn't anything she could do to get him out of this.

Seeing as he only had two options, and running away seemed like a _really_ bad idea if he wanted to keep breathing, Riddick tugged the goggles off his head and began to awkwardly put in the contacts. Keeping his head turned away from the men sitting at the table in an attempt to keep the shine shielded from their sight, it took him several tries before finally blinking his eyes and getting an unobstructed view of his surroundings in full light for the first time in years.

The first place he looked was in Lyra's direction and he was pleased to see a smile make its way onto her face. He'd been a little worried that the contacts would make him look odd or something, not that he'd admit that out loud, but her reaction eased his mind. A chair being shoved backwards had his head jerking to the opposite side of the table and his good mood vanished when he saw the looks being sent his way.

"Y-you're Riddick!" Sam practically yelled while pointing his finger at the taller man's head and taking several steps away from the table.

"The hell Lyra! What are you doing hanging out with a damn criminal?!" Ken cried outraged as he stood up to join his brother.

Sending Markum a glare when he covered a chuckle behind his hand, Lyra finished the last bite of her bread and rolled her eyes. "In case you've forgotten, so are you," she stated, brushing off her hands and pushing herself to her feet.

"It's not the same thing and you know it," Ken snapped. "_We_ never killed anyone!"

". . . well, not _technically_," Sam mumbled, earning himself a sharp glare and an elbow to the side from his twin.

Markum's snickering turned into full blown laughter but Lyra ignored the outburst and snorted. "You two were responsible for nearly three dozen mercs attacking each other, several of which died as a result of the fight, _and_ there was a decent sized bounty on your heads, so yeah, you got no right to say anything about him."

"She's got a point," Markum said after clearing his throat. "If I hadn't needed your particular skill set all those years ago you'd both be rotting in a slam somewhere."

The room went silent and Lyra swallowed thickly as memories of that painful time in her life came flooding back. Her mother had been killed by the Tanker's tracker, so to hunt down one of the best in the business Markum had used his savings to pay off the bounty the twins had on their heads in return for their help in finding the bastard. The two hackers had been on the ship ever since.

Yuri was the first to break the silence. "What does it matter who he is?" he asked curiously, not bothering to look up from his meal. "We all have a past, even little Lyra here has a few skeletons in her closet, it's what we choose to do with our futures that determines who we are. So the question is, should we condemn this man for what he's done, or, as Markum has done for many of us, give him the benefit of the doubt?"

Giving the older man a smile Lyra mouthed 'Thank you,' and received a nod in return. Letting her eyes wander over the youngest members of the crew she could see them mulling the question over in their minds. Hilde had been with Markum for over twenty years, Lenny even longer, and if the Captain didn't have a problem with Riddick, then neither did they. And Yuri, well, he owed Markum a life debt. So long as the newcomer wasn't putting the ship or its crew in danger he was behind him all the way. The only people she had to worry about were Cane and the twins.

Hoping they would see reason, if it came down to it she wasn't sure she'd be able to choose between them and Riddick, she held her breath as she waited for one of them to say something.

Dropping his fork on the table, Cane leaned back in his chair and gave Riddick a serious look. "I had my suspicions about you from the start, what with that fancy eyewear of yours, and your fighting skills only clinched it for me, but anyone who cares enough for Lyra to put up with all our shit is alright by me."

He turned a questioning gaze to the twins and, seeing everyone else's eyes on them, Ken reluctantly grumbled, "Okay, okay, we get it," he said, holding his hands up in surrender. "We'll leave the convict alone."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Lyra turned towards Riddick and smiled brightly. "That settles it," she said as she walked over and took the goggles from his hand. "Riddick is gone now." Covertly tucking his goggles into her back pocket so she'd have a memento of the one who got away, she continued. "You're simply Richard now, an honest merc looking for work."

"Oh no, no, no," Sam said with a shake of his head. "That name just won't do. 'Riddick' sounds badass, 'Richard' . . . makes me think of a middle-aged balding man with a protruding stomach and toupee."

Ken nodded his head in agreement. "He's right. If you're going to be giving yourself another name you need to pick something fierce, like Killer."

"That's a stupid name," Cane scoffed. "What are you, five?"

"If you think it's so bad then why don't _you_ come up with something?" Ken glared.

"How about Thunder?" Sam offered, only to have to dodge two different cups that came flying at his head. "Okay, I get it. No need to get violent."

"I vote for Tiny," Cane joked, grinning at the look of disgust on Riddick's face.

"I think Sexy would suit him better," Hilde chimed in as she winked and blew the bald man a kiss.

Lenny looked up from the device he'd been working on and cocked his head to the side before saying, "Perhaps we should allow the young man to choose for himself. A name is rather important after all."

Sam and Ken exchanged looks. "Nah," they chimed simultaneously.

As the names continued to fly, each one more ridiculous than the last, Riddick shook his head. If he'd had any doubts about their sanity before, they were long gone now. Within the span of a few minutes they'd gone from freaking out about his identity, to trying to come up with a new one for him. It was official; they were all bat-shit crazy.

At some point during his musings the rest of the table had joined in on the conversation, which had somehow turned into a contest on who could come up with the strangest name. When they started spouting things like Plu and Rux, he pinched the bridge of his nose and walked out into the hall. Hearing footsteps behind him, Riddick turned around and came face to face with Markum.

"So, Richard," the older man began. "What are your plans now that you're a 'free' man?"

Shrugging, Riddick glanced back inside the room in time to see Sam throw a half eaten piece of bread across the table and nail Cane in the face. "Find a ship I suppose."

Placing a hand on his shoulder, Markum squeezed hard enough to bring the man's attention back to him. "Cut the crap," he said, his tone serious. "We both know you have no intention of going anywhere without Lyra, so what I want to know is . . . do you think you can protect her?"

Blinking in surprise, he hadn't expected the question, Riddick looked him square in the eye. "I've got her back . . . if she'll have me." He'd muttered the last part under his breath, but the warm smile on Markum's face told him he'd heard it loud and clear.

"That's all I wanted to know." Giving him a slap on the back Markum turned around and headed back into the room.

As he listened to the sounds of laughter coming from the room on his left, Riddick couldn't help but wonder if perhaps he'd gone mad himself. When he'd first been picked up by Lyra his only thought had been freedom, well, that and trying to figure out how the hell she'd managed to actually catch him. And then she'd gone and treated him like a human instead of some kind of animal; feeding him, clothing him, even conversing with him when she got bored. It was a foreign concept, kindness, and he'd tried his damndest not to get sucked in.

Obviously he'd failed quite spectacularly.

Now not only was he fond of the woman, but here he was hoping she'd allow him to stick around. He'd always been a loner, it was how he survived, yet the thought of leaving her behind made his heart clench. Shaking his head he was forced to admit that Markum had been right. Without him even realizing it she'd gone and tamed him.

When Lyra stepped out to join him in the hall a short time later and he saw the smile on her face he decided that perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing, so long as _she_ was the one doing it.

"So this is where you ran off to," she said, closing the door and leaning against the wall next to it. "You should've stuck around; the name choices were really starting to get creative."

Riddick wrinkled his nose. "Yeah . . . I think I'll stick with Richard."

Laughing at the look on his face, Lyra grinned before clearing her throat. "Now that you've got your shine dealt with I guess you'll be on your way. Any idea where you'd like to head? I can help you find a decent crew to join up with if you'd like."

She refused to meet his eyes and he frowned. Even after all the hell those guys had put him through she still wanted to play this game with him. Growling softly, he stepped forward so he was standing just inside her personal space. He'd had enough of her aloofness; it was time to stop messing around.

"First," his voice rumbled. "Stop pretending you don't like me, that's bullshit and you know it. Second, what have I ever done to give you the idea that I wanted to _go_ anywhere? And third . . . look at me dammit!"

Lyra's eyes snapped up to his and she jolted backwards when she realized how close he really was. Pressing herself farther into the wall at her back she narrowed her eyes and glared. "I never said I _liked_ you," she snapped, irritated by his commanding tone.

Rolling his eyes Riddick shifted, nearly closing the gap between them. "You didn't have to; your actions gave you away. You never would've cut me loose on Furya if you didn't care for me to some extent, nor would you have offered to bring me here. And you definitely wouldn't have allowed me to act so familiarly with you."

Huffing in annoyance she attempted to push him aside, but to no avail. Resigning herself to being stuck there for the time being, she tilted her chin up and looked at him defiantly. "What's your point?" she countered. "So what if I don't exactly hate you? That doesn't change anything."

A frustrated growl rose in his throat and he was tempted to smack her head against the wall a couple of times to beat some sense back into her. Damn but she was stubborn. Deciding he needed to try another tactic, he touched his forehead to hers the same way she'd done to him back on Furya and was pleased to see it had the same result.

"If you truly don't want me to stay just say the word and you'll never see me again," he whispered gently. "Otherwise, stop shutting me out."

She was quiet for so long he started to worry that perhaps he'd been wrong.

When she raised her head to look at him he released the breath he'd been holding. The smile on her face told him all he needed to know and he returned it with one of his own.

"Alright, you win," she muttered finally as she pulled herself together. "I'll allow you to join me." When his smile turned into a smirk she raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't look so smug if I were you. I said you could come, I never said you could _stay_. Once you help me bag a couple of pricey bounties to make up for what I lost cutting you loose, you'll be on your way. Is that clear?"

Barking out a laugh, it was good to have the old Lyra back, attitude and all, he made to pull her into a hug when he heard a muttered curse and the sound of a door being wrenched open. He'd barely lifted his arm when several bodies came spilling out into the hall, nearly taking the two of them down in the process.

"What the hell guys?!" Lyra demanded, grabbing Riddick's arm to steady herself when Sam's shoulder nailed her in the knee.

Ken at least had the decency to look sheepish from his spot on the floor where he lay tangled up with his brother. "Um, would you believe we were only trying to find a missing button?" he asked with a hopeful look on his face.

"She'd probably be more inclined to do so if you were actually wearing anything with one," Cane said, smirking at the two men from his spot in the doorway.

"Maybe it belongs to somebody else," Sam retorted as he struggled to his feet.

Hilde poked her head around the doorframe. "Or maybe you two were just trying to get closer so you could hear things better." Before they had a chance to respond she added, "So, did you get anything juicy? You must've; I mean just look at how they're clinging to each other. Come on, spill, I want all the dirty details."

The last sentence had been directed at Lyra and, looking down, her eyes widened when she realized that she was practically hanging onto Riddick's side. Jumping away like she'd been burned, she glared at the doctor who was grinning cheekily. "It's not like that," she told them firmly. "I was only trying to keep myself from falling, that's all."

"And what of your touching conversation?" Ken asked once he was standing. "I heard the word 'like', and there was definitely some whispering going on. What exactly were you two lovebirds discussing out here, hmm?"

"Forget talking, I want to know what they were _doing_," Hilde said suggestively while sending Riddick a wink.

Burying her face in her hands, Lyra wasn't sure whether she wanted to beat them all to death or find a rock to crawl under. It didn't help that Riddick was standing there with a small smirk on his face as he watched the situation unfold. The man even had the nerve to look _amused_.

Thankfully Markum chose that moment to intervene or Lyra very well may have gone berserk. "Okay you guys, that's enough," he said, his tone filled with mirth. "Lyra here has finally snagged a decent partner; let's try not to scare him off before we have a chance to give him a proper 'Tanker Initiation'."

Several evil laughs and giddy smiles followed that statement and Riddick felt a shiver go down his spine. When Lyra turned to look at him with a smirk he shifted uncomfortably. Something told him he was _not_ going to like this.

Hilde looked him up and down and then frowned. "It'll be such a shame to cover up that beautiful body of his," she muttered with a shake of her head. "Oh well, I suppose it can't be helped." Moving so she could wrap Lyra in her arms, she kissed her on the forehead. "Be sure to tell me goodbye before you leave darling." Giving Riddick one last wistful look she turned down the hall and disappeared.

"What did she mean by 'covering up'?" Riddick whispered, a touch of worry lining his voice.

Lyra grinned. "I guess you'll just have to find out won't you." Glancing over at Cane and the twins, who'd huddled into a circle and begun discussing things in hushed tones, she said, "He's all yours, have fun!" Whistling for Shade, who hadn't moved from her spot inside the mess hall since she'd been told to stay, she linked her arm with Markum's and waved.

When the two of them headed off together, Riddick found himself left with three grown men who'd started stalking towards him with crazed looks in their eyes. He saw Lenny and Yuri still sitting at the table a few feet away and sent out a silent plea for help, but Lenny was entirely focused on whatever he was working on and Yuri seemed to be steadfastidly ignoring them.

"Come along big guy," Cane said as he and the twins circled Riddick. "You're coming with us."

He had the fleeting thought that now would be a good time to run, ditch these psychos and find a crew that wasn't completely off their rocker, but quickly dismissed the idea. If he took off Riddick knew he'd never see Lyra again and that simply wasn't an option. So he steeled his resolve and followed after them with his head held high. He'd dealt with grave situations before, more times than he cared to count, he could handle a silly prank.

ooooo

Lyra and Markum had retired to his room where he'd been in the process of showing her his newest book collection when they heard Riddick's growl.

"Fuck this shit!"

There was the sound of stuff being thrown around with other voices added to the mix, but they were too muffled to make out. Something large bounced off a wall, the noise reverberating throughout the ship, and Lyra cringed. Riddick sounded _really_ pissed off and a part of her was afraid he might decide sticking around wasn't worth it. She hadn't thought he'd take it so bad.

"Relax there kiddo," Markum said reassuringly when he saw the look of worry on her face. "He's not going to run if that's what you're thinking."

"How do you know?"

Placing his hand under her chin he raised her head, forcing her to look at him. "Trust me, I know." When she snorted in disbelief, he flicked her nose and then spun her around and gave her a gentle shove towards the door. "If you don't believe me then go and see for yourself. Sure he might complain a bit, but from what I've seen that man would walk through hell and back for you."

She only hesitated for a moment before giving him a smile and racing off, narrowly avoiding Shade's tail in her haste.

Thrown by her master's sudden departure, Shade gave Markum an adorably confused look and then followed after Lyra at a much slower pace.

Shaking his head, Markum walked over to his closet and pulled out a small box he'd been keeping for over fifteen years. Selena hadn't been very sentimental when it came to her possessions, but there had been one item she'd wanted Lyra to have when the time came. Her wedding band.

Pushing the lid aside, he stared down at the silver ring that looked like hundreds of tiny wires woven together in an intricate pattern. He'd promised her mother that he would look out for her, and he had, but now it was time to allow another to take over. If he'd read the convict correctly, and he was certain he had, the next time they all met up he'd finally be able to fulfill Selena's dying wish.

'Help her find her true happiness.'

He knew Lyra loved the Tanker's crew like family, but he also knew that she needed more. She needed someone by her side who would challenge her, respect her, and above all cherish her . . . something her previous boyfriends failed to do. Oh sure, they pretended pretty well, but it didn't take much digging to find out they were only after her for her reputation, or money, or body. Not that he ever told her that, he'd even sworn his crew to secrecy, but once he'd learned about their true reasons for sticking around he'd given the men free reign to do whatever they'd felt was necessary.

Billy and Derek hadn't been _that_ bad, they'd simply wanted to use her to improve their own standings, so they'd only gotten a small taste of his wrath. A few well placed bounty notifications and the two men had found themselves being hunted like dogs. Reese, well, he'd made the mistake of blabbing about all the things he planned to _do_ to Lyra, once she let her guard down, in the presence of one of their informants. They'd waited until he'd come to them before attacking. To this day Lyra had no idea the man had actually been killed, she still thought he'd run off.

Closing the lid, he tucked the box back on the shelf and closed the closet door. It wasn't time to bring it out, yet, but he had a feeling it wouldn't be long now. Assuming the two didn't kill each other first.

ooooo

It didn't take long for Lyra to find Riddick; all she had to do was follow the constant stream of curses and growled threats.

"That's it, enough of this shit!"

Coming to a stop outside Sam and Ken's bedroom, she waited to see what would happen next.

"You can leave, run away with your tail between your legs if you like, of course if you do that you won't get within a thousand miles of Lyra . . . ever," Sam's voice replied causing her to narrow her eyes. They had no right to threaten Riddick like that, not over something as silly as this, and she was about to burst in and demand they stop at once when she heard a familiar sound of irritation.

". . . fine," Riddick grumbled unhappily. "Just hurry up and get this over with."

Taking a step back Lyra leaned against the side of the door, a look of astonishment on her face. She'd wanted to believe Markum when he'd said Riddick wouldn't leave, really she had, but no one had ever stayed before and she didn't want to get her hopes up.

Smiling, she looked down at Shade who'd taken a seat at her side. "How about we go and save our crewmate. I think he's suffered enough." Patting the cat on the head, she spun around and stepped through the partially open door. "Alright you guys, I think you've . . ." Trailing off, she stared at Riddick with wide eyes. It took a few seconds for the image to sink in and when it did she slapped her hand over her mouth to try and stifle her laughter.

Riddick, who stood in the middle of the room draped in a long, pale blue gown with a drooping neckline, corset bodice, billowing sleeves, and enough lace, ribbons and frills to make any porcelain doll jealous, felt his eyebrow begin to twitch as he watched Lyra nearly double over from all her laughing. It was embarrassing enough that he was wearing it at all, but to have _her_ see him in it . . . mortifying didn't even begin to cover it.

"What do you think?" Sam asked, grinning like mad as he swept his arm over their masterpiece. "Stunning isn't he?"

Ken, who was struggling to keep his own laughter in, nodded in agreement. "Absolutely breathtaking if I do say so myself."

On the other side of the room Cane thrust his hand into the air in triumph. "I finally found the wig!" he called out, waving the dark hairpiece back and forth.

When he started moving towards him Riddick let out a threatening growl and was shocked when Shade stepped between him and the blonde man, her teeth barred in anger.

Cane froze and looked at Lyra in question. "Please tell me your devil spawn has gone and lost its mind," he said, scrambling backwards as far as he could go when Shade snapped at him.

Clearing her throat once she'd calmed down enough to speak, Lyra shook her head. "Of course not, she's just protecting her crew."

Sam and Ken shared a worried look before holding their hands up and stepping away from Riddick slowly. "Easy there kitty, we're not doing anything to him. Promise," Ken said in a gentle tone as Sam pouted.

"Ah, come on," Sam whined. "Couldn't you at least let us finish? I mean we were so close."

He was using the puppy dog eyes, something she could never say no to, and Lyra looked at Riddick apologetically. "Alright, hurry up and get that thing on him." Snapping her fingers, she pointed at her side when Shade looked over at her. "Come here girl, we're going to let them finish up."

The three men waited until Shade had taken a seat before cautiously inching towards Riddick. When the cat remained where she was, they converged on him all at once and Lyra quickly lost sight of the bald man.

A few minutes later Riddick was sporting a long black wig and Sam, Ken and Cane stepped back to admire their work.

"Now," Ken began as he straightened out one of the locks so it was laying flat against Riddick's chest. "All that's left is to get a picture for the wall."

Riddick's eyes narrowed and he opened his mouth to snap at them, but Lyra beat him to it.

"No photos," she said with a shake of her head. Hearing them groan in disappointment, Lyra added seriously, "He isn't part of your crew, so no pictures."

"Well can we at least make him take the walk of shame?" Sam asked hopefully.

"Only if you want to die," Riddick growled, yanking the wig off and tearing at the fabric covering his skin. Ignoring the cries of "No, not the dress!" and "That was a one of a kind piece!", he kicked the offending article aside and glared at the others in the room. "If you breathe a word of this to anyone I _will_ find you and make you suffer."

The threat only seemed to amuse them and he stormed out of the room without another word. Making his way down the hall and back into the cargo hold, he ran a hand over his head and released a frustrated sigh. He'd thought he could handle anything they threw at him, he'd been wrong. Not only had he been humiliated, but _she'd_ witnessed the whole thing and felt the need to try and _save_ him. He'd be lucky if she didn't kick him off her ship within a week.

After giving the guys a stern warning to leave Riddick alone from now on, Lyra followed after said man and found him pacing back and forth in front of the storage containers near the ship's ramp. "I'm sorry about all that," she said, coming to a stop a few feet away from him. "They're used to pulling that stunt on newbies, and since those guys can't exactly complain if they want to stay onboard, they can get away with just about anything. They shouldn't have gone so far though and for that I apologize."

"It was just a stupid prank," he replied gruffly. "No big deal."

Snorting, Lyra gave him a look that said he was full of it. "Could've fooled me. You looked about ready to tear their heads off in there."

Not wanting to speak about it any longer, or _ever_ for that matter, Riddick changed the subject. "So, how long we gonna stick around? Not that I haven't _enjoyed_ the company of these _fine_ people and all, I'm just curious how long we're gonna be grounded."

His voice was absolutely dripping with sarcasm. Not that she could blame him; they had been rather tough on him. "I had planned on staying for a few days," she began, grinning when his eyes widened and he paled slightly. "But seeing as you need to start earning your keep so you can pay me back for everything, I think we should probably head out soon."

Riddick sighed in relief. He wasn't sure he'd be able to handle staying with the crew of the Tanker for another hour, let alone several days. "So . . . when do we leave?"

Laughing, Lyra shook her head. "Why don't you head back to the ship. I'll be along once I've said my goodbyes."

He didn't need to be told twice and was almost outside before she'd even finished speaking. Crouching down so she could look Shade in the eyes she said, "I want you to go with him. Try to keep him from breaking anything, and if he so much as thinks about taking off without me feel free to bite his hand off." Scratching her under the chin, Lyra stood up and watched her leave before heading off to track everyone down.

ooooo

When Lyra stepped onboard her ship a half hour later she saw Shade and Riddick on opposite sides of the cockpit staring each other down. "Care to explain what the hell is going on here?"

Sending the creature a glare, Riddick held up his hand and pointed at the bloody marks covering it. "That _thing_ of yours attacked me for no reason!" Shade growled at him and he barred his teeth in response.

"Let me guess, you tried to start up the engines," Lyra said with humor lacing her voice. When he shifted the glare to her, she held up her hands in a placating manner. "That was my fault, sorry. I told her to bite your hand off if you tried to take off without me."

Narrowing his eyes, Riddick crossed his arms over his chest.

"I'd meant it as a joke; I didn't think you'd actually start the ship," she said, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. "Sorry."

It was impossible to stay mad at her, one because she looked too damn cute with those big sad eyes, and two because she seemed genuinely sorry about what had happened. "It's fine," he said finally, moving to lean against the wall next to the console.

Smiling, Lyra sat down in her chair and began the ignition sequence. She'd traveled alone for most of her adult life, had preferred it to be honest, yet she'd never been more excited to leave the Tanker than she was at that moment. They were an odd bunch, true; a merc, a convict and a cat, but that suited her just fine. Normal was overrated anyway.

Patting the side of her leg, she ran her hand through Shade's fur when the animal curled up on the floor next to her. "Alright you guys, let's get off this rock." With no particular destination in mind at the moment, they could always figure that out later, she slowly brought the ship off the ground. In no time at all they were space bound.


End file.
